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Frozen in Time

Chapter 4: Admiration and Fan Meetings

Izumi Sena x Reader (F) (!!)

Synopsis: Now that the model finally returned to the country for idol work, you were given a task to participate as their photographer for tomorrow's fan meeting. Unknown to them, you are one of their avid fans but surprisingly, you kept yourself low due to your career. Note: I'm going batsht crazy in this one with my godly morning shower thoughts. This got me wildin'. And also, I'm giving them names cuz why not? Warnings: Swearing, violence, and Masked Pervert.

"No, please, stay away the f*ck away from me! We're over this since Repayment Fes?!"

You ran away from a certain someone like your life depends on it. You didn't expect that a few idols in that agency will remember you, even after a year of not meeting them after the yearbook project last year's Repayment Fes. Especially from the one who scared the living nine rings of hell out of you back in your days as a student of Yumenosaki, who is chasing you with a maid dress magically appeared from thin air.

Oh, you wanted to forget the days you were in the Theater Club, being harassed by a certain someone from the club you were in.

"But isn't this an everyday routine for us to have a wonderful, lovely exercise, (Name)? Or should I say, Little Miss Photographer~?"

Chills crawled on your spine when you heard that nickname from him. You wanted to kick him where the sun doesn't shine and leave him right there on the spot.

You nearly forgot how many times you ran laps around 22nd floor, where Starmaker Production's office is. You just wanted to visit your dear friends who graduated a month ago but you ended up being chased by a certain idol from a certain unit and he is one of the certain few you don't want to meet after graduation.

You felt so desperate to call for help that you took out your phone from your pocket and contacted a group call instead of a single person in contacts. You pressed the call button with no hesitation and waited for them to respond. When you saw that someone picked up, you started the call.

"H-Hello, my knights in shining armor, I need your help. A clown is chasing me and I'm running away from him like my life depends on it...!" Tears formed on the corners of your eyes as you called and you tripped down, cursing to your clumsy self for being careless.

Oh, you wanted to run away from him so bad that you desperately called for help from someone but your cries were thrown out of the window when he caught you in his arms, making you scream in fear. As he caught you in place, he wrapped the maid dress around you, trapping you and preventing you from pushing him away from you.

"Now, now, I want you to behave just like you always do~"

You struggled and flailed as he carried you in his arms and let out a satisfied hum. Your phone fell to the floor and the call ended just like that when he brought you somewhere far from the office and he grinned like a child getting a candy he always wanted.

"Let go of me, you masked pervert! You harassed me too much!"

The sounds of rushing footsteps can be heard after the elevator opened up for them as they reached the 22nd floor and outside of StarPro's office. Panic-stricken gazes look around to see if there are any differences around the place. One of them saw a phone on the floor with the screen facing up.

He picked up the phone and checked to see the owner of this certain device made in the new age of modern technology. A blush crept up on his cheeks when he saw the phone case. It's a picture of him in his introduction pose with the theme of Knights in the phone case's background.

"Whoa, so the owner of the phone is a Knights' fan? Seemed nice of them to use a picture of you on it. What a rare sight~" His companion snickered and he rolled his eyes. He pressed the power button to see who's the owner and to his surprise, it's their photographer.

His companion nearly cackled out loud at the sight of you as the lock screen's wallpaper. They had no idea you're a Knights fan. He shrugged it off and put your phone in his pocket to keep it safe. "Enough of that, Leo. Let's look for (Name) in StarPro's office."

"I think you don't need to do it, Izumi." A blonde idol showed up from behind them. Izumi turned around and saw a familiar idol he was once obsessed with back in his years as a student of Yumenosaki Academy.

"Ah, Yuu-kun~" Izumi opened his arms wide and went closer to Makoto. But the latter dodged him before he'll get trapped in Izumi's embrace, resulting in Izumi nearly falling down. Leo guffawed at the sight and clutched his stomach and fell on to his knees. "Today is really not Sena's day, huh?" Leo continued laughing and Izumi let out an annoyed sigh in response.

Makoto let out a nervous chuckle and continued, "Anyways, about Big Sis, she's in the office with fine. I'll go look for her." Makoto walked away and entered StarPro's office but was stopped by their unit leader by the entrance. Hokuto Hidaka, Trickstar's leader, showed up at the entrance, stopping his unit member.

Before Makoto asked Hokuto why he was here, a loud crash was heard, scaring the two other idols outside of the office. "Well, you don't need to look for her here and she's at the conference room with Masked Perv— I mean, Senior Hibiki" Hokuto pointed his pointer finger at StarPro's conference room.

The four idols ran their way into StarPro's conference room to see what was going on and to their surprise, it was just you pinning Wataru down to the floor with a broomstick, which is a prop from Dramatica's circle. Around the two of you was a maid dress and scattered papers on the floor, which seemed like the events before the crime scene.

An ominous aura seeped out of you as you glared at the eccentric idol of fine, who was grinning smugly at the way he was pinned down to the floor like this. Your glare is cold and it speaks death. It was a dangerous sight to see from a normal person's perspective. But to an eccentric, it was amusing yet slightly intimidating.

Dread seemed to wash over the two knights and the two stars at the sight of you doing such physical violence towards an idol, especially someone from a well-known unit.

"B-Big Sis?! Please put that broomstick down...!" Makoto yelped out and that caught your attention. Your gaze shifted to where Makoto is and your glare never left your gaze. Chills crawled on his spine and he knows that you're clearly angry.

Izumi walked closer to you and looked down on you with the same gaze but less sharper. "Alright, that's enough." All of the sudden, he flicked your forehead. That action surprised almost everyone in the room. Makoto jolted in surprise when your head was slightly thrown back a little, Hokuto was stunned that his eyes widen, the corner of Leo's mouth twitched and took out his pen and notebook to compose after a single click of the pen, and Wataru on the other hand, was amused at the sight.

You gritted your teeth and irked in annoyance. "What the hell was that for?!" You glared at Izumi while rubbing your forehead. Izumi and Leo's eyes widen at the sudden profanity spilled out of your lips. "Can y'all just calm down? This masked pervert right here is forcing me to act along with the script he had on hand."

"Script? What script?" Makoto asked you in confusion and looked at the scattered papers around you and Wataru. You picked up the said script on the floor and waved it in the air. It reveals the name of the play.

"It's the Love in Spring, inspired by Love's Joy and Love's Sorrow by a certain German pianist, Fritz Kreisler. This clown right here added a twist on it, which it'll be based in the old English times—the play's timeline was around in the early 1900's. It's a forbidden love story between the Middle Class and the Noble Class—which are the statuses of the main cast." You explained as you held the broomstick's handle with your other hand and let out a sigh.

Wataru stood up and dusted himself with Yuzuru's help. He chuckled as he looked at you with delight and began to tell the story behind the script. "And this script was once written by this little dove right here. I helped her remaster it until day. But sadly, before the script was close to be finished to the connoisseur's expectations, she left the club after we became second years."

"Sis wrote that script?" Hokuto's eyes looked at you in disbelief and Wataru nodded at the question. "In case you wanted to read it, her name was written on the script's cover."

You look away, embarrassed and shyly chuckled. "Oh, quit that..."

Wataru chuckled and grinned at you. "Fufu~ My, Little Dove's skills never became rustier than I expected them to be. You're still the smart and the talented one, I see?"

Your bashful expressions disappeared and you groaned and ignored him and turned to face the four confused idols. You put the broomstick aside and began to explain, "This clown here is one of the reasons why I left the club and joined the Broadcasting Committee and Handicraft Club. I even have to hide away from him by joining the Library Committee and spend my whole day reading books while not being disturbed by him."

"And you harassed me almost every time ever since the day I signed myself up to be the part of the music and background team in the club back then." You hissed and crossed your arms, which he answered in mere amusement in response, "And that's because I saw you reading the lines and enacting that certain character in the script. You know you can't waste such a potential, Little Dove~"

You walk away from Wataru and hide behind Izumi and Leo. You let out a sigh and faced Makoto and reassured him, "Sorry, Makko. Don't worry about it. I'm not mad or anything. I was carried away by my emotions when I was supposed to follow the script as always."

"Wait? Seriously?" He asked and you nodded. "And this is another reason why I left the club."

Wataru let out an amused chuckle and grinned. "(Name), it seems like you called your precious knights to save you—the damsel in distress."

"How many times do I need to tell any of you that I'm not a damsel in distress...?" You facepalmed and let out an annoyed sigh.

"And since we're here to pick up the damsel in distress," Izumi spoke up and carried you in his arms. You blinked twice, trying to process what the heck was going on. Seriously, what is with Knights carrying you like a princess?

"Excuse me, sir. I can walk on my own." You muttered and narrowed your gaze to his, meeting his icy cold ones. You irked when you saw his gaze, seeming like that he read you like a book. The silver haired stated, "We've completed our task and if you'll please excuse us because we have a meeting with her later by ten."

Leo and Izumi excused themselves to leave and walked towards the elevator to go down to the 7th floor, where the New Dimension agency office is. You raised a brow while looking at him coldly. "Do you even need to carry me?"

Izumi smirked and replied, "Well, I have a feeling that you'll run away like a runaway princess. You were so close to being late until we found out that you're here on the 22nd floor when you're supposed to be on the 7th floor. Are you betraying your loyal knights and going to the heavens?" You facepalmed at his remark and let out a sigh.

"For your information, I pressed the button with 22 on it without seeing." That was a half-lie. He doubted your words as he pressed the button to make the elevator doors open wide for them to enter.

"What an airhead you are." He commented, making you irk once again. "Not to mention, you were an absolute klutz and completely impulsive. Why don't you be more aware of your surroundings next time? I'm sure you won't end up playing cat and mouse with someone like what happened today." He continued as the three of you entered the elevator and the doors closed after Leo pressed the button with the number seven on the controls.

A vein popped out on your forehead, making it seem obvious that you were irritated at his words. You inhaled deeply and exhaled out. Your exhale sounded like a cat's hiss, which made the composer stifle his laugh and ended up letting out a silent snicker.

You glared at Izumi and spoke out, catching Leo's attention. "Tsukinaga, please translate the Sena-nese for me in the shortest term possible."

Leo perked up and grinned. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Izumi glared at him but the composer is not communicating in body language right now. "It translates into: Next time, please be careful and be more aware if you don't want to get involved in a situation you don't want to be in." Leo grinned while he translated. Your eyes widened at the translation. You began to doubt that but that affirmation alone made your heart skip a beat and pink began to dust on your cheeks.

"I see..." You were at loss for words.

Izumi wanted to hit Leo's head but his hands were full. Why? It's him carrying you in his arms. Not that he would mind but he liked the feeling of holding you close. The model shook his head at the thought and controlled himself to not blush hard at the thought alone.

At the 7th floor in front of the elevator, Arashi and Tsukasa were waiting for you, looking worried. Tsukasa paced back and forth, feeling nervous because you sounded so distressed when you called them, to which Izumi answered the call for them.

"Has anyone seen (Name)?" Leo asked the others after they entered the conference room. To his surprise, they shook their heads, telling him they haven't seen her.

"It's almost ten. Why isn't she here yet?" Izumi sighed out and scoffed, "She'll bring her modeling agency to shame if she's late."

As Izumi muttered under his breath, everyone's phone buzzed in their pocket. Izumi took his phone out of his pocket and to his disbelief, he saw your contact picture from the group chat Arashi made in Hold Hands. He answered your call and his eyes widened when he heard your voice, sounded like you're in pure desperation.

"H-Hello, my knights in shining armor. I need your help. A clown is chasing me and I'm running away from him like my life depends on it...!" The call ended after you screamed. Hearing the word "clown" made Leo point out a certain someone from the circle group he is in. The model sensed a bad feeling inside him after hearing you call.

"Wait. "Clown"? Isn't that Wataru—" Leo's words cut off when Izumi ran out of the conference room to get you. The look on Izumi's face scared Tsukasa when he left the meeting room with Leo.

Arashi felt dizzy seeing Tsukasa pacing back and forth out of worry. She noticed that he began to overthink of your current predicament and she placed a hand on his shoulder, making him stop from pacing.

"Don't worry, Tsukasa." Arashi patted his shoulder. "(Name) will be alright. She'll be fine." Tsukasa nodded at her words of reassurance and waited beside her in front of the elevator.

Just as the doors opened, Arashi pulled out her phone from her pocket and took a picture at the scandalous sight right in front of them. Tsukasa's look of worry disappeared when he saw Izumi carrying you in his arms.

When the two idols exited the elevator, Arashi snickered and commented. "This is the second time this has happened, Izumi; you have (Name) in your arms like the knight you are." She held her chuckle and put her phone back into her pocket.

Tsukasa deadpanned and to his dismay, he spoke out, "You do know you'll create such rumors when someone sees you like this... Carrying Ms. (Name) like that..."

Izumi huffed out. He was about to retort when you spoke out in realization. "Ah, right. Today's my day off as Knights' photographer..."

"And that means it's a date~" Arashi beamed out and took you out of Izumi's arms. "Let's hang out with Mika." She spun around and squealed in glee. You felt dizzy and began to question yourself why almost everyone in Knights love to carry people to their destination.

"R-Rashi... I'll pass." Your words caught her attention and she stopped squealing and spinning around. Arashi looked at you and tilted her head in confusion. "Hm? Why the sudden decline? Do you have other matters to attend to?" You nodded at her question and she put you down to the floor. She softly smiled and hugged you. "Alright, then. We won't let you stay long if that's the case. Perhaps your little kitten missed you right now at the agency."

A smile curved up on your lips after hearing about Nyaitsu missing you. Oh, your work days here in Ensemble Square made you miss him with all your heart and resisting the urge to not touch anyone's hair while you're missing your cat. Especially Izumi's hair. It seemed so soft, just like Nyaitsu's fur. You thought of petting it, knowing if it has the same softness like—

You shook your head at the thoughts about your crush being petted. You felt embarrassed thinking about it right near your crush. Just thinking about it made your heart pound inside your chest. A blush grew on your cheeks, feeling ashamed for what you had done.

To avoid any more embarrassing encounters or actions, you hurriedly left the hallway and walked your way towards NewDi's conference room. The way you left without a word made the others confused at your sudden exit.

Today's meeting with Knights ended up smoothly inside the conference room. After Leo and Ritsu pushed Izumi out of the conference room, leaving you, Tsukasa, and Arashi in there, it became quiet and checked your notes about last week's result in the circle meeting tasks. While checking, you noticed that something was missing from the notes you wrote.

"Did I miss the Niki's Kitchen circle group...?" You muttered under your breath and Arashi heard it since she was sitting beside you. "Hm? Izumi wasn't around when that circle meeting occurred."

"And BIBLION's circle meeting was at Starmony Dorm." You crossed that circle's name out of the list. "Sadly, it was done at Starmony Dorm and outsiders aren't allowed to enter."

"And CRAFTMONSTER?" Arashi looked at the list and she let out a quiet chuckle, inaudible for you to hear. You replied, "It was chaotic. Glad that I met Makko and Hokkun there at the props room. They helped me calm down and make me feel better while Itsuki and Amagi are..." You didn't continue and let out a sigh as you reminisced the chaos that ensued the previous week's events.

"And Ritsu used you as his pillow for the whole time, hm?" You nodded at her question. "Yeah, at least the young ones know how to calm an adult down while the other ones are acting like children but still have the maturity of an adult..."

Your comment made her chuckle as she continued to look at your notes with you. A smile curved on your lips when you reminisced about what happened the previous week. You let out a sigh, making the memories you reminisced seemed like a nostalgic memory. "Sweets Fan Club, Pretty 5, Overnight Outdoors Party, and Kaori made me think that it's completely normal." The blonde couldn't help but to be amused at the sight of your smile.

"You should've seen Suou eating the mochi with Oukawa. He looked like a hamster when he ate one." A chuckle escaped your lips at the memory. "But Shiratori is more like a hamster when running around when he sees something interesting and when he acts like a fan. I nearly let out the fangirl in me but failed..." A shy chuckle escaped your lips as you rubbed the back of your neck with your hand. "I can't help it... I acted more of a fan and you saw me like that..."

"I know~" Arashi chirped. "And it's adorable seeing you like that."

Unknown to you while you rambled about the memorable moments you had in the first week of the project with Arashi, she looked at you and noticed just now that you didn't wear your mask. It is a sign that you felt comfortable around Knights. A soft smile was curved up on her lips, seeing how you've improved in socialization. She began to feel soft at the sight of how your eyes sparkled and a joyful smile on your face that flowers began popping out of her and spinning around her.

"When I attended Kaori's circle meeting, I noticed that Oukawa and Suou are in the same circle. I was surprised when I found out that they're distant cousins. They look so alike... Maybe it's because of their eyes..."

Arashi continued to listen like a good listener she is. She always listened to your rambling and accompanied you all the time whenever you two were on breaks. It feels soothing to her ears listening to your voice.

"Ah right, remember the photographs of Mr. Sena I showed to you a few days after he left Japan for work in Italy? It was the photos of him at AOUMI, right? I remember that I told you that his eyes matched the water in the tanks due to the lighting.. I couldn't help but to admire it to the fullest. It was such a pleasant sight to behold..."

Her eyes widened the moment you said his name. 'Oh, here it is...' She smirked and smugly looked at you as she prepared her phone to record your rambling about Izumi. The moment she tapped the record button, she knew that she'll use this for future purposes.

"As expected of a model and an idol like Mr. Sena. He looked so beautiful that he seemed so... attractive? Ethereal? Eye-catching? I don't know how to describe it. He's just so... Oh, I'm out of words to say..."

Tsukasa deadpanned at Arashi's smug look on her face. He closed his eyes and exhaled out. He can see that she is so ready to save these recorded audios and use it in the near future.

The garnet-haired knight knew the look on her face says that she is looking forward to see you wearing a wedding dress and walk down the aisle, holding a wedding bouquet on your hands, the veil hiding your beautiful face, waiting for it to be lifted by your groom after exchanging each others' vows at the altar. A dreamy sigh escaped her lips and that made him let out an audible sigh and walk out of the conference room.

You continued to ramble on and became more of a chatterbox the more you told Arashi about what happened last week with a smile. She only nodded and listened with an occasional "Yes, go on."

A giggle escaped your lips and you stopped when you were off track from the actual topic. You shook your head and cleared your throat and spoke once more. "By the way, I have a few pictures of Suou and Oukawa eating mochi together and their cheeks are really like a hamster's..." Your words faltered when you didn't feel your phone in your pocket. You went pale when you felt no phone in any of your pants' pockets.

Arashi looked at you with worry and concern. "Is something wrong?"

"My phone's not here..." You muttered out. "I must've left it or left it at StarPro's office." Panic began to wash over you and stood up to leave the conference room.

"I'll help you look for it, (Name)." Arashi followed you and exited the conference room as well.

Izumi and Leo noticed that you and Arashi left the conference room, seeming like you were looking for something while you were checking your pockets. Leo let out a smug grin, almost akin to a cat's as he looked at Izumi, who seemed clueless. The composer chuckled and poked the model's shoulder and smirked, "Hey, Sena~"

Izumi looked behind him and narrowed his gaze. "What?"

"Aren't you returning the phone back to the original owner?" That question alone made the model's narrowed gaze disappear and change into a stern one. "I'll return it but I want you to never interrupt me and her or you'll spook her." Izumi left to follow where you and Arashi had gone and Leo giggled at Izumi's concern towards you and followed him.

Tsukasa couldn't help but to deadpan at the sight of his seniors following each other like baby ducks following its mother—you. He felt like trailing behind to see what will happen next but, and oh, he might as well as avoid another secondhand embarrassment his seniors will cause.

Just as the two of you entered the elevator's lift, someone called you from behind. "Hey, (Name)." You look behind to see who calls you. It was Izumi. You raised your brow as you looked at him and you and Arashi exited the elevator before the door closed. "Is there anything you need, Mr. Sena?"

"You forgot something." He replied. You eyed his movements when took something out of his pants pocket. Your eyes widened and you paled as you saw a familiar phone charm hanging on the phone case. "O-Oh..."

There revealed on his hand is your phone. And what's worse for you is that your idol crush has it with him. It was pretty obvious on the phone charm and on the phone case. Your face flushed red in embarrassment when you saw your phone in his hand. You nervously gulp down as your hands begin to shake.

Arashi's jaw dropped to the floor when she saw the phone charm hanging on your phone. She grinned and gave you a side eye with a glint of mischief on her eyes. She stifled her laugh and covered her mouth with her hand and held her chuckle.

"Is this yours?" He asked you with a stern face. "Y-Yes..." You nodded at his question and he stretched out his hand to give your phone to you. Your shaky hands took the phone out of his calm ones and quickly kept it inside your pocket. "T-Thank you, Mr. Sena..."

'Oh my God. He knows I'm a Knights fan and he's my total bias...!' Cold sweat was formed on your forehead and you quickly excused yourself to leave and enter the elevator without thinking. Just as the doors closed, three of the idols from the same unit stood there in confusion.

Aghast, the blonde broke the silence. "I didn't know she's a fan of Knights... Especially Izumi." She covered her mouth with her hand in surprise to hide her gaping mouth. She turned her head to look at Izumi. "Hey, Izumi, what do you... think...?"

Arashi's voice faltered when she saw Izumi standing there in the same position after you left. The only thing that added in his current frozen state was a full blush on his face, reaching the tip of his ears. His eyes wide in surprise and his mouth slightly agape. Seeing this kind of reaction from the model, Leo waved his hand in front of his face and pinched his cheek.

"Oi, Sena. Why are you standing like a statue?" Leo poked his cheek to pester Izumi. "Did Medusa make you look into her eyes?" A wide grin was plastered on the composer's face while he continued to annoy Izumi with his antics.

To their surprise, Izumi didn't flinch and just stood there, frozen like a statue after the sudden revelation. Arashi snickered and took a picture of Izumi in his current state. "Seems like (Name) touched his heart and squeezed it that he froze like that." She let out a chuckle after she commented and put her phone back into her pocket. "Oh, Izumi, you're infatuated with the one you swore to protect. The silent oath you kept in your heart is blooming out of you and we know that~"

Inside Izumi's mind is absolute chaos. If it were to show his different personalities in his mind, his infatuation towards you is battling with his obsession towards Makoto. It is a war, a war between two personalities, whether his heart will long for Makoto or move on to pursue you and your love. His annoyed personality in him pressed the button with the label named "To love" when it was supposed to be "To avoid". Oh, his heart was pounding in his chest, suffocating him and his life source is to love you with all his heart and soul.

On your way to YMSK Modeling Agency, you couldn't help but let out a distressed groan when you held your phone in your hands and pressed it close to your chest. You were quite embarrassed to hide it anymore when Izumi found out that you were one of his fans.

You shook your head at the thoughts as you reached the agency building's entrance and cleared your mind with what you had discussed with Knights in the conference room.

"So, after the results of last week's project, I found out that BIBLION and Niki's Kitchen are the ones that were not involved in the project due to circumstances." Tsukasa remarked and continued, "Here are reasons why. One, Izumi wasn't present at Niki's Kitchen's circle meeting and two, BIBLION's circle meeting was held at Starmony Dorm and outsiders aren't welcome to enter the said premises."

You nodded as you listened to Tsukasa as the meeting continued. For someone who is the youngest member of the unit, he has the capability of being the leader. He was known for being crowned as the King of their unit at Repayment Fes since the coronation after Leo graduated. It was a heartwarming sight for one to see but saddening for the others.

"Since the said circles didn't participate in the COLLABORATION project, it will be held once again once the requirements are met: Complete members, location— limited for both sides— the photographer and the members, and most importantly, the member of the said unit must be present along with the photographer." Tsukasa turned to the next page of the report and looked at the next main topic on the agenda and spoke. "Since last week's tasks are done and the results are out, we'll move on to the next one in the agenda."

You flipped the page of the announcements and saw something pretty interesting at the main agenda.

"New Dimension Agency Units' Fan Meeting?" You read the main agenda out loud, enough for them to hear. Tsukasa nodded his head and stated, "Yes, the units in that agency will have a fan meeting outside Ensemble Square's main live stage."

"And it says here that I'll be there to take pictures of Knights near their table for the fan meeting." "Yes."

You fell silent. You often came to Knights' fan meetings to support them but this time, you'll be there for work. "I see..."

You pretended to understand but deep inside, you were so close to crying because you couldn't attend the fan meeting as a fan. You felt like a poor, unfortunate soul before you were blessed by the omniscient being's benevolence. You wanted to sigh but you have to make a good impression towards an underclassman of your alma mater.

Right now, you were listening to what Tsukasa stated in this week's meeting. But your focus shifted to something you couldn't actually pinpoint. You felt someone staring at you but you couldn't guess who nor wonder your gaze to who was staring at you. At the same time, you felt that the gaze that stared at you was oddly familiar—

A blush colored your cheeks when you gave the person who stared at you a bombastic yet criminally offensive side eye glance. You caught Izumi in the act at 4k HD 1080p and it seemed that he didn't notice you glancing at him so that's good. You shook your head to focus. 'Work is work.' You thought.

You furiously scratched your head with both of your hands as your face went flustered red when you found out your crush was staring at you for the whole meeting. If only you could take a picture of that rare sight and all is done but he will be mad at you for doing so. Taking a picture without their consent is not in your vocabulary. Consent is a must and everything will be fine after they say yes or no.

But that sight was tempting for you that you still had your self-control and it had you on a chokehold. You felt glad that you didn't do that or else you'll not only be feeling his cold, intimidating aura, but a whole blizzard as he looked down at you with a condescending gaze, watching you as if you were an insect to be stepped on. Luckily, it didn't happen and you didn't get a cold or fall sick if you overstepped a boundary of his.

You quickly fixed your hair to your usual hairstyle before you entered the office. You don't want anyone to call you as "unruly" or "unkempt" since the day you became Knights' photographer and it'll bring great shame to their name. A sigh escaped your lips after you made yourself look neat and tidy from head to toe and opened the door to the office entrance. Before you could greet them with a "good morning", something pounced straight onto your face, making you stumble backwards and trip on your feet and fall to the floor.

"My, my, Nyaitsu. You missed her that much?" A familiar voice was heard after the chuckle. Her voice irked you that you gently removed the kitten away from your face and held him in your arms. You sat up and looked up to see who it was.

"So, Saki, are you here to see me suffering or leave me like this?" You sighed under your breath when you saw your cousin, Saki, smiling in front of you as her height towered, almost intimidating you. "Nah, I'm here to see you arrive but the kitten here recognized your scent so I couldn't help but to be amused at the sight." She jested as she held out her hand, offering it to help you stand up. You accepted it and stood up properly and dusted your pants.

Nyaitsu climbed up to your shoulder and clinged there while his tail swayed up in the air. He purred as he rubbed his cheek to yours and napped. "I know, I miss you too." A small chuckle escaped your lips and smiled.

Saki began to notice the signs of distress in your appearance that she looked at you with worry. "Is something wrong? You seemed to have a lot in your mind." She guided you to your cubicle and sat on your swivel chair while she sat down on the stool nearby, meant for your guests or clients.

A sigh escaped your lips and answered, "New Dimension's idol units are having a fans meeting in three days."

"Was that a problem?" She raised an eyebrow in confusion and you nod. "I won't be able to face Mr. Sena now that he knows I'm one of Knights' fans. And what's worse, he knew that he was my bias..." You lower your head in shame as you slumped down to your work table.

"I'm pretty sure he saw that on your personal account when you last posted your Sena Shrine." Cold sweat was formed on the back of your neck when she stated one of your posts in your Hold Hands account. "The moment you changed your bio at your profile, that was when Knights found you when his fans tagged them and they added you, especially Izumi's but I guess he didn't see your profile I guess."

"Oh, now don't remind me of that please." Your hands grabbed the sides of your head in absolute despair to turn back in time and forget that Hold Hands ever existed. "What's funnier is when they made a group chat with you in it. Only Arashi knew about your account and your posts involving you as a fan were kept private with your friends. And yet, she knows you are a Knights' fan. At least she didn't tell the others about that."

You let out a groan and gave her a side eye. "Stop that." You hissed under your breath. "It's embarrassing to hear that from you."

A few knocks were heard on the cubicle, making the conversation turn into a halt. The two of you look up to see the front desk manager leaning on the cubicle's entrance. "A good morning to our favorite photographers. There's a gift for the photographer named (Name) of YMSK Modeling Agency." She said as she revealed a paper bag and a small box in her hands and placed it on your desk.

"Pfft— (Name) of YMSK Modeling Agency..." Sakj stifled her laugh and swiveled to turn away from you. "I think I finally know who's the sender." She cackled out loud and chortled. "Cuzzie's got an admirer and she met him from work~"

"Hey, Big Sis..." You let out a flustered chuckle at her mentioning the word "gift". You shook your head and sighed. "And, what else?" You asked her. She answered, "It was there on the counter at the lobby when I returned there. No sender or no return address. Weird."

"What's weirder is being more aware after we found out the contents inside this paper bag. Let us hope that it's nothing uncanny or dangerous." You continued as you took the paper bag from its handle.

"And I am certain that there is nothing dangerous in there." She replied with a smile as she chuckled that you raised a brow as you glanced to look at her and she smiled in return. Her smile was too blinding for you to look at that you don't have any other choice but to fumble your hands on the paper bag.

Just as you opened the mouth of the paper bag to see the contents, a blush colored your cheeks pink when you realized who was the sender of the gift. You could vividly remember back then when he looked at the plush toys on the shelf in the souvenir shop, the way he held the plush on his hands, and the way he carefully held the paper bag gently from the handle with great care.

'Izumi Sena of Knights.'

"There is no way he gave me this..." You revealed the item by pulling it out of the paper bag. What was revealed is a blue octopus plush from AOUMI Aquarium. "Oh my God! It's a gift from an admirer!" The other two full-fledged adults of the society squealed at the sight of you holding the plush's head and fangirled.

You rolled your eyes while they fangirled and sighed as you pulled out the whole plush out of the bag. Then, it was followed by a ribbon tied on to the box from the plush's arm, hanging you lifted it up in the air. You blinked twice and held the box in your hands and untied the ribbon that was wrapped around it.

"Oh my, what's inside the box cuz'?" Saki asked you in anticipation and eyed the box closely. The cover was made of cardboard with the color of navy blue, Knights' color motif. You closed your eyes and slowly opened it while looking at the box with one eye open, hoping it's not a bomb.

As the box's lid was fully removed, it revealed a pair of gloves, fitting for your size. It was made of felt velvet and it's soft to the touch the moment your finger slid on the glove's cloth. Knowing the quality, it is expensive that you paled and closed the box quickly and gently as you can.

"Well, it seems your admirer is surprisingly rich." Saki chortled and covered her mouth using her hand to hide her grin.

"I know who gave me the plush but not the item inside the box." You deadpanned and returned the plush into the paper bag. "If he comes back, I'll return these to them. Who knows what might happen if there's a hidden camera or recorder or tracking device in the plush. It'll be the worst thing that'll happen to me once I find out that an "admirer" of mine is a stalker."

Somewhere in Japan, a sneeze was let out of him, making his companions stifle their giggles at the sight and at the sound of his sneeze. "My, did someone speak ill of you today?"

You checked the box carefully as you placed the gloves on the table gently and with ease. Knowing every gift box like this has a plastic or styrofoam, you removed the foam from the box and saw a small card in it. You read the text in the card and it's written in neat handwriting. It reads:

Accept this gift as a mark of gratitude and handle it with care. I'm looking forward to your growth and progress as we worked together as collaboration partners.

—Zumi

The note ends with a familiar name—or nickname in particular under the handwritten text on the note and the signature on the bottom right part of the said card. Your jaw dropped and your blush grew when your assumption became reality after denying a few moments ago when you knew who actually gave you these gifts. You had hoped it was someone else but it's hard to deny when the one giving this gift to you is someone you knew. You felt like jumping right straight into the sea and sinking into the seafloor and never coming back.

"Oh God..." You facepalmed as you looked at the gloves in realization. "I think I'm in love and I'm in denial about it..."

"Denial is a river in Egypt, indeed." The two ladies snickered as they began to create gossip by communicating with their body language.

"You two, quit that."

Finally, today is the day of the fans' meeting. Your hands were shaking in anticipation when you saw the long lines near the front of Knights' stage. Overwhelmed by the sight of the crowd, you felt like you're about to faint and wanting to disappear in the distance. You breathed to calm yourself down but nothing worked. You can feel your heart pounding in your chest, suffocating you from the core.

"I can do this. I can do this. I can do this..." You muttered under your breath as you chanted to yourself to calm down. "This'll be work-related. Fan hobbies will be saved for later..."

Your thoughts went out of your mind when someone tapped on your shoulder. You nearly yelped out but someone covered your mouth to keep yourself quiet as their arm circled your waist. Out of mere instinct, you elbowed their sides and pushed them away from you.

"Ow! W-Whoa! Hey, chill. It's Saki!" Saki raised her hands up in the air in defeat. You noticed that she wore the same clothing as you from head to toe, except that she had a paper bag hanging around her forearm and no camera sling hanging around her neck.

"Cuz', I brought a change of clothes for you to go in line." She said and held out the paper bag to you on hand. "Wear this once your shift is out because it'll be your turn to get their autograph and have a handshake with each member."

You felt like you were on the verge of tears. How supportive of her, she thought. "Did auntie know about this? She'll get mad for barging in at work you know?"

"Oh, I'm wearing a disguise, dummy." She grinned devilishly. "Don't look down on the former Theater Course student of Yumenosaki. I know your moves and lines, my sweet little cousin~"

Annoyed, you clicked your tongue and looked away out of mere irritation. "Theater kids... You remind me of that masked pervert from the Idol Course..."

Saki shook her head in amusement and chuckled. "I'll be here at the sides, watching you once it's almost clear. But first..." She trailed off and went to the merchandise area. "Merchandise is on the top priority list~"

"H-Hey, don't spend all of your money on merch first..." You held out your hand as you tried to call out to her and you let out a sigh when you knew that her brain was not listening.

You turn your head to see the idol units from New Dimension and smile at the sight. Knights' stage is close to Double Face's and Switch's. Realizing that, it'll be hard for you to walk with the guise that Saki brought for you if any of them can recognize you—especially Madara Mikejima and Tsumugi Aoba, your fellow batchmates from Yumenosaki Academy, and Sora Harukawa, who can recognize your color through his synthesia.

You grimaced and put your face mask on and fake glasses for the first weak layer of disguise. You held your camera up and adjusted the photo quality and pointed the lens to any random item or view you could see. Your hands nearly lost hold of the camera when it was directed to Izumi, who was on Knights' platform with the others.

From the camera's screen, it was shown that you were behind ES' staff and it was almost blocking your point of view from the camera but the focus remained on Izumi while he's talking to Leo and Tsukasa related to work. As the lens focused to him, making the items near from your perspective to blur, you couldn't help but to be amazed at the sight like always as time seemed to freeze once more. That sight alone made your heart pound in your chest and this time, it wasn't out of anxiety or fear but out of admiration.

Speaking of Izumi, you knew he was the one who gave you that blue octopus plush because you saw him holding one back at AOUMI Aquarium's souvenir shop a week and a few days ago. A faint blush dusted your cheeks at the sight. Luckily for you, it was hidden behind your mask, making you smirk in relief.

As you became mindless and your thoughts went blank for a moment, you pressed the shutter. The camera let out a short click after the beep and the flash came out, causing the people in front of you to turn back to look at you. Everything seemed fast in reality but your time became slower than the speed of light traveling from one space to another.

Your mind returned to reality when you felt a dangerous gaze on you. The staff in front of you were about to report you to the security and contact them. But, just as they saw your personal identification hanging on the lanyard's clip, they disregarded it and turned their attention back to where they had last stopped.

Their gazes brought a shiver on your spine as you stayed in that position for what felt like forever, making you tremble in fear. You were snapped out of your current fearful state when someone approached you from behind, making you jolt as you were alarmed by them. You turn around to see who it was and— Lo and behold! It's Izumi Sena, looking at you with his usual cold and icy look on his face.

Izumi suddenly grabbed you by the waist and guided you to the back of Knights' stage in an urgent manner. You bit your lip in anticipation and held your breath as he did so. But his hand on your waist made your mind blank and the panic in you disappeared. That made you blush and feel butterflies on your stomach.

'Oh, God... Is he unaware that he's subtly making a move on me?' You looked at him with a confused gaze. 'Or is he trying to get me out of there and save me like the knight he is?'

"Now, aren't you supposed to meet us before the fan meeting time?" Izumi asked you and looked at you with a worried look on his face. As always, his voice betrayed his expressions but his close friends know all too well that he showed his feelings and emotions through his voice and not on his face. "You were trembling and jolting like a cornered mouse. Did a few cats scare you?" He asked another question with a snarky grin as his hand on your waist went to your shoulder, comforting you.

Inside Izumi's mind was full of questions when he saw you trembling. He gently rubbed his hand on your shoulder, comforting you as he held you close to him in a protective manner. His icy blue eyes that were once a cold gaze became warm and softened at the sight of you overwhelmed at the crowd. He wanted to pull you into an embrace to comfort you more but he couldn't. It's because he was at a public area, where there are prying eyes and nosy fans are nearby, watching them.

As he realized this, he looked around to see if anyone was looking or glancing for a moment to them, he quickly escorted you, held you closer to him as he and you approached the others, who were behind the stage's wall, waiting for the both of you to arrive. His expression changed from worry to serious when they all turned their attention to the two of you as both of you approached them.

"Ah, finally! Principessa is here~" Leo chirped and waved his hands in the air with his signature greeting. "Uchuu~ Principessa...?"

Leo's voice faltered when he saw your current distressed state and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw you like this. Your head down, gaze to the floor, embracing yourself as you made yourself smaller and vulnerable, and faint trembling was seen but evident on your hands as you clutched the camera sling. "Principessa? Is something wrong?"

"She was so overwhelmed by the crowd near the staff area that it caused her to be like this." Izumi answered Leo's question for you and he knew that you were in no condition to speak a word. "I found her behind the staff members after a quick flash caught my attention. When I went there to check to see where the flash was from, that's when I saw her, trembling like a cornered mouse being glared down by a few cats."

"Ah..." Arashi covered her mouth and remembered something. "She hates crowds."

The other Knights members turned their heads to look at the blonde knight who seemed to realize about your current predicament. "(Name) hates crowds or audiences. She hated being the center of attention and it made her feel scared." Arashi explained.

Izumi rubbed his hand on your shoulder again after he heard it from Arashi. His face stern but there was a hint of worry in his gaze. Leo was about to say something about it but Arashi covered his mouth before Leo could say a word or two and ruin the atmosphere and spook you or anger the cynical knight.

Ritsu looked at you with a look of concern and yawned. "I'll be right~ back." He walked away and waved his hand. "Wait for me in a few minutes."

"Kuma, you can't just walk away when the time of the fans' meeting is approaching like a storm." Izumi facepalmed with his free hand and sighed, followed by Tsukasa and Arashi, who let out a soft sigh afterwards, forming a domino effect.

"I'm back." The languid vampire knight whispered behind you, making the silver haired knight jolt and pull you into a protective embrace as he heard Ritsu. Arashi's eyes widened in astonishment and commented, "Well, that was fast..." She wasn't sure to herself if she was referring to Ritsu's return or to Izumi's reaction speed the moment he became protective of you in your current state as he sensed danger on all sides.

"Stop doing that, Kuma. You're scaring her." Izumi glared at Ritsu. The vampire's brain is not listening as he leaned closer to you and draped himself over you. Arashi nervously chuckled and walked closer to the three of you. "Now, now, Ritsu, would you mind if you give them some space? (Name) seemed like she didn't want attention from more than one person and Izumi is quite protective of her right now..."

"Nacchan, Secchan, she needs to be huddled up in a most comforting way, you know?" Ritsu snickered and nuzzled his cheek on your neck, which made you jolt in surprise, alarming Izumi. "And she needs some time alone, you know?" The cynical knight pushed the vampire knight away from you gently and slowly.

Arashi couldn't help but to hold herself back from screaming and squealing. She felt so jittery that she fished for her phone in her idol uniform pocket and took a few pictures. But her hands were too shaky to take a picture with her phone, Tsukasa took the phone from her hands and did it in her stead. The blonde knight squeezed their unit leader tight in her embrace and kept fangirling in silence while the leader was done with his seniors.

"Hey, hey, Anzuuu~" Leo waved to the producer behind them and ran towards them. "Please give me my music sheets and pens. Inspiration is starting to overflow out of me!"

"Leo, we're three minutes close to the current event in the schedule." Anzu replied and looked at the time on her phone. "Will you save your compositions for later?"

The ginger-haired knight let out a laugh and grinned. "Only for you, my Producer~" The producer couldn't help but to sigh and approach the others who were surrounding you. "Three minutes on the clock. Prepare yourselves."

"Yes, Producer."

After Anzu left, Izumi leaned closer and whispered, "Everything will be fine. Just stay calm, okay?" He reassured you as he pulled you into a warm and gentle embrace. Izumi knew that this is not the usual him but a side he never showed to anyone other than Makoto. His smile grew when you nodded and patted your head.

"Good luck out there. We'll be watching over you."

The fans meeting went well as they came to meet and greet with their favorite idols. While you're taking pictures, you face your lens to the units other than Knights, mostly on Switch and Double Face. You were wondering why Madara is handling two units at once and formed a joint unit with Kohaku from Crazy:B, making your jaw drop in surprise when you saw the cherry blossom haired bee standing beside the festival lover. You can see that there is bad news once things get serious, just like how Madara became serious in such situations.

While your attention remains on Knights as their photographer, a voice calls out to you and it makes you lose your focus when you know who called you. You turn around, pretending to take a picture and you see him waving at you while he's signing his signature at his unit's CD album.

'Madara Mikejima...?!' Your jaw dropped when he was able to recognize you. You slowly shifted your attention back to Knights and ignored him. 'How did someone like him see me near Switch's stage? Of all times...' You irked as you glared at him from the camera lens and sighed. 'Great, ignorance can be a bliss sometimes...'

"(Name), I know it's you right there~ Come out~!" You were about to raise your voice and approach him but Kohaku stopped him before things will take a serious turn. "Madara, ya can talk to this "(Name)" person after the fan meeting. She'll still be around fer work."

"I see, I see..." The brunette nods and confirms. "Well, since you had met her in the previous week, I'll listen."

A sigh of relief escaped your lips and continued to take pictures as you moved to change the angle's perspective for the pictures to be taken and to be shown to the others. Somehow, a hint of envy and slight jealousy was seen in your gaze when you saw Izumi's fans receiving his autograph and a handshake from him. You lower your camera to your chest and stare at him from a distance. A fleeting pain was felt in a single heartbeat from your heart, making your mood to change and let out a sigh.

From Knights' table on the platform, Arashi saw that all-knowing look of envy on your face. She let out a small grin and elbowed Ritsu. The vampire grinned in return and the two gave Izumi a side eye from their seats, looking at the knight who was signing for his fans' autographs and gave them a handshake and began to communicate through body language.

'Should we tell him?' Arashi glanced at Ritsu and raised an eyebrow. 'Nah, it'll delay the project's progress further.' Ritsu gave her a stern gaze in return and smirked as his eyes gestured to Leo and wiggled his eyebrows. 'But we can tell Tsukippi about it later~'

'Oh, certainly.' Arashi grinned and the two silently snickered as they continued to give their love to their fans as idols in this current event. Tsukasa on the other hand noticed how Ritsu and Arashi communicated through facial expressions and held his sigh as he returned his attention to his fan before him while watching over his seniors.

Tsukasa noticed that Leo was looking at something on the other side of the venue and called him to catch his attention. "Leo, are you composing with your mind again?" He asked and looked at what the former king was doing right now. "Nah, I'm looking at Principessa right now." Leo answered and Tsukasa glanced at where the ginger was looking. There he saw you holding the camera over your chest, looking at Knights' stage with a crestfallen gaze. He noticed that you were staring at Izumi and it clicked him. "Don't tell me..."

"Yeah, like I had guessed." Leo smirked and signed an autograph from his fans in line. "She wants to be in line because she's one of our fans."

"But isn't she staring at Senior Sena just now?" He asked him and he immediately returned his attention to greet his fan with a smile. "Thank you for supporting KNIGHTS, my lady. Oh, Leo, she wants you to sign the album's front case, our lady's request."

"With pleasure." Leo nodded and signed the album and grinned. "Thank you for your heartwarming support, your highness~"

As the fan left, they returned to discuss the topic they had just paused. "Hm, I dunno but we'll talk about this once the event is over." Leo said with a whispering tone, making the garnet-haired knight agree to it. "We'll talk about this with Naru and Rittsu later."

Tsukasa nodded and glanced back to look at where you stood but to his surprise, you weren't there. 'Did she go somewhere?' He quickly looked around and didn't see you behind or nearby Switch's platform and became concerned. 'I think she was covered by the staff behind them again...'

A few hours had passed and it was almost time for the event to be over. That was Saki's cue to intervene and switch places with you.

While looking around, you found her near the restrooms while you were on a break. You gave her your camera and she gave you a paper bag containing a different set of clothes for you to wear. Saki grinned and patted your head. "Make sure to stay unrecognized~"

"Of course, I will." You smiled in return and went to the restrooms to change into your new set of clothing.

Minutes later, you came out of the restroom, revealing yourself in black long sleeves, blue denim baggy pants, and in a messy half-ponytail. "Sheesh..." Saki grinned and bit her lip. "You're pretty-pretty..."

"Oh, please..." You rolled your eyes and placed a hand on your hip. You kept the paper bag in your tote bag and strutted your way to the event area, offering your support with a smile as you wore your face mask and fake glasses. "I'm off...!"

"Good luck on the line~" Saki waved her hands as she saw you left and went to the staff area at the event venue with your camera in her hands.

While you're in the line, you couldn't help but to feel the same thrill you had felt back at the previous fan meetings. Your heart pounding heavily in your chest, as if it is threatening your rib cage to set your heart free from its cage. You felt your breath become shallow and light. You felt like you were asphyxiated due to your heart racing and pounding in your chest, almost making you unable to breathe. Oh, the excitement in you, you couldn't control nor bear it.

You peeked from the fans in front of you in line and you were so sure you were here just a few minutes ago. When in reality, you were there in the line for five minutes. 'This line is fast right now.' You thought. You couldn't help but to nervously gulp down and be excited to greet them.

You become paranoid that they might recognize that you brought the gloves your "admirer" gave you when you thought that they'll know how your skin felt after having a handshake with them. But you kept the gloves in your bag and sighed when you remembered that it was given by Izumi. You remembered applying a different hand lotion in the restroom a while ago and you know that Arashi can recognize you by your hands. You even bothered to spray a different perfume on you because Ritsu can recognize you by your scent. A sigh escaped your lips when you knew this all along. At least you came prepared

"Scusami, ammiratore mio..." You sighed in Italian and noticed that you are ten fans away from being close to them. "T-This line is pretty fast right now..." Your eyes widen in shock and nervously gulp down. 'I can do this... I can do this...'

"Hm?" Ritsu raised an eyebrow and caught a scent and sniffed in the air without making it obvious. "Nacchan, am I smelling what you're sniffing?"

"W-What's with that all of the sudden, Ritsu?" Arashi sweatdropped at the vampire's behavior and looked at him with concern. "Did Koga rub his wolf-like behavior onto you?"

"Hmm..." Ritsu tried to recognize where the scent came from while he was distracted by his fans, giving them his signature on the merchandise and shaking hands with them. "Not only that... I sensed a familiar presence but it's quite faint."

'H-He really lives up to his family's traits...' She gave him a wry smile and a small wry chuckle. "I-Is that so...?"

The moment you faced Knights in front of their table, you greeted them but you changed the pitch of your voice to make sure your cover wasn't blown. "G-Good evening, everyone."

"Good evening to you too~" Arashi waved her hand as she greeted you. "Can I shake hands with you?" You extended your hand to offer a handshake with her and she accepted it. "Of course~" Just as her hand touched yours, she began to recognize whose hand she just had a handshake with.

'Eh...?' A faint look of shock was seen on her eyes but it was hidden from her sweet exterior. 'T-These hands... Didn't they belong to...?'

"Izumi," She turned to look at Izumi as her sweet voice was stern, making the latter turn his cold gaze at her. "Yes, Naru?"

"Mind giving her a handshake?" You nearly jolted in surprise at what Arashi said. Izumi looked at her and raised his brow, as if he's telling her "Naru, you seemed suspicious right now" and narrowed her gaze to the blonde night, to which she softly chuckled in response.

"Heh? Nacchan, aren't you being a little pushy towards Secchan now?" Ritsu snickered and looked at you as his eyes revealed that he had a clear interest in you. "Hey, you..." You looked at the vampire and replied, "Yes...?"

"Mind me giving you a hug? You seem pretty interesting~" You paled at his request. Oh, you know that deep inside that he wants to tease you. 'Was my disguise making me seem more obvious...?'

You timidly nodded. Ritsu left his seat and walked closer to you and hugged you tight yet firm. Just as he pulled you into an embrace, he noticed that you hesitated to hug him. Of course, he also noticed the scent of your perfume was masked behind by a different scent. He noticed the size of your body, it was obvious that it's almost like yours and he knew it every time he draped himself onto you almost every day.

'I knew it...' Ritsu smirked and let go of you. He grinned with his usual sleepy yet teasing grin and returned to his seat. "You know, you can be a good body pillow. You're cute~ I'll hug you again..." Ritsu leaned forward and reached his hands out to you to hug you again and that made you nervously gulp down.

"Arashi'll stop you~!" Arashi held out her hand to stop Ritsu, blocking the vampire from leaning closer to you. "I'll stop you." Ritsu gave the blonde a side eye and clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Heh? Why? She agreed to me hugging her."

"Well, "Why?" you ask? Even though she agreed to let you hug her, it doesn't mean you'll have to do it again. You can't cause trouble for her, Ritsu." Arashi opened her arms wide and grinned. "You can hug me. I'm comfortable enough to be hugged by anyone~" Ritsu only responded with a yawn and returned to his seat, making the blonde idol sigh. "...And he's yawning again."

"And, oh. By the way, you seemed pretty familiar." Arashi beamed, making the ginger's ears perk up, jumped out of his seat and leaned closer to you. "May we take a picture with you?"

"O-Of course..." You took out your phone and opened the camera app. When Izumi eyed that familiar phone case, he held out his hand and asked you, "Mind if I'll do the honors of taking a picture?" You didn't hesitate to nod and gave him your phone.

The cynical knight grinned and looked at his fellow unit members with pride and raised the phone in the air after changing it to selfie mode. "Hmph, I'll make sure to use my skills in this one."

"Now, now, Senior Sena..." Tsukasa sighed and posed for the camera. Izumi made sure to include everyone on the screen and smiled. Arashi beamed and spoke out, catching their attention. "Alright, say "Knights"." Just as everyone said the cue, Izumi tapped the button a few times, taking a few pictures and saving them into your phone's gallery.

Everyone in Knights noticed the phone charm. Leo, Arashi, and Ritsu stifled their snicker while Izumi blushed in realization. Izumi gulped down when he found out who this fan was. You on the other hand paled when you realized that you forgot to remove the phone case from your phone. Meanwhile, Tsukasa was oblivious as he didn't know why his seniors were acting like this.

Izumi looked at you with a smile and returned your phone. He noticed that your hands were trembling as you accepted it, making him pat your head, calming you down. You felt that it was the same way he patted your head last week, making you smile.

You didn't notice that Izumi leaned closer to you and whispered into your ear. You realized it when you caught a whiff of his scent, causing you to freeze in place as you felt his warm breath touching your ear.

"Thank you for your kind support, mio principessa."

As Izumi leaned away, a blush colored your cheeks. The red blush spread on your face, making the other members chuckle quietly in response.

"Y-You're welcome, Izumi..." For the first time, you said his name. Hearing you saying his name made a reaction from the whole unit. Ritsu looked at you with pure shock on his face, Arashi covered her mouth with her hands as she became teary eyed out of joy, Tsukasa smiled like it was normal, Leo seemed like he was itching to compose and write because his fountain of inspiration is overflowing, and Izumi's faint blush grew on his cheeks from pink to red.

'She said his name. That's progress...'/'She said my name... What a relief...'

You bowed as a sign of respect as you thanked them. You walked away from Knights' table and let out a sigh of relief as you exited the venue.

While they were left in shock, deep inside, they were cheering for you out of pride and happiness. Izumi on the other hand stood there, his brain trying to process what had just happened.

At Switch's table, a gaze fell onto the photographer near them. He noticed that something was quite odd about that photographer. He tugged the vest of the person on his right, trying to catch his attention.

"HiHi~? Master, that photographer's "color" is strange..." He whispered into the unit leader's ear, making him nod in agreement. "I agreE. I noticed that that photographer seemed differeNT, but the outfits were the samE. Were they an impostor or a doppelgangER?"

"Sora thinks that the photographer's color is the same but brighter, while the one before is duller from the original color." Sora explained to him, making him nod. The blonde magician continued, "And Sora noticed that the same dull color was at Knights' table. Sora thinks that there are two photographers now but they have different hues."

"WelL, should we find out the difference lateR?" Sora nodded at his question and remained seated on his seat.

After the event, you changed your clothes in the restroom once more, returning yourself to wear your most comfortable clothes for the mid-spring season. "Aw, I prefer that you'll wear that black long sleeve..." You sighed at Saki's complaints and shook your head while you adjusted the gloves on your hands. "Saki, you know I hate wearing dark colors in spring, you know?"

"I know... But it suits you well..." She sighed and chuckled in response as she took the paper bag from your hands and exited the restrooms.

You looked at Saki, whose clothes are far more different from yours and the ones you wore a while ago. You nodded in satisfaction and smirked. "You're smart in disguises, cuz. You're smart in your theatrical work."

Saki huffed in pride and smirked. "Well, I take pride in my skills in disguises and quick changes, you know?"

At the exit, you were met by a familiar redhead. His eccentric looks made you know that he is one of the Five Eccentrics of Yumenosaki Academy. His red hair, coloring like the sunset as twilight approaches with the sun setting in the horizon at summer, making his eyes seem like two golden suns. But, his honey golden irises stared at you like a cat gazing at the full moon in the dead of the night.

Natsume Sakasaki, leader of Switch. The youngest member of Five Eccentrics, accompanied by his junior, his apprentice, Sora Harukawa. You raised an eyebrow seeing these two familiar idols, waiting for you to show up. A soft smile was formed on your lips when you saw someone skipping his way towards you.

"HaHa~ Sis (Name), it's been a while since we last met." Sora skipped closer to you and smiled. 'This ball of sunshine...' "How are you?"

"I'm fine as always, Sora." You patted Sora's head and smiled. "Do you miss my headpats?"

"Sora always misses Sis (Name)'s hugs and headpats." Sora smiled and let you pat his head, making you smile as he saw your color brightened just by his smile alone.

Natsume looked at Sora and asked him, "Sora, what's their color noW?"

The blonde magician stared at you and Saki with his sapphire-like eyes. He paid attention to the changes between you and Saki's color and answered Natsume's question. "As Sora had guessed, their colors are the same. Sis (Name)'s color is dull while the color of her "doppelganger" is bright."

You jolted in shock. You nearly forgot that Sora is also there at the event. You groaned in annoyance out of realization. "Oh, I forgot this kid is there..." You hid behind Saki but the other couldn't help but to chuckle at your predicament.

"Well, our cover's blown by this kid's ability, huh?" Saki chuckled and patted your head, "There, there."

"Oh, so this is what you're hiding from us, huh, (Name)?" A familiar voice was heard as she strutted her way towards you. A blush was formed on your cheeks seeing a familiar face beside her. "A-Arashi... Why is he here?"

"Oh, me?" He placed his hands on his hips and stared at you with a snarky grin on his face. "Well, your cover was blown from your phone case, princess." Izumi placed a hand on his hip, revealing himself in his usual spring-summer outfit. You were practically blushing right now and you realized you weren't wearing your face mask. You covered your face with your hands in shame and embarrassment.

"I-I'm pretty sure that wasn't me." You denied it right away without making it obvious. Sora watched you like a child full of curiosity and wonder while observing your color. A smile was formed on the blonde magician's face and innocently beamed, "Sis (Name), your color changed! It's quite rare for your color to change~"

"What do you mean? No, wait. What was my color like right now?" You tilted your head in confusion and looked at him as you asked him.

"Sora can say your colors are mixed but it's all connected and related to love, of course." You and Saki's jaw dropped at Sora's words. "Love, you say?" Arashi looked at him in awe. Sora nodded at her curious question and grinned.

"Now that Sora knows what Sis (Name)'s color is like when she was in love, Sora can say the color." Sora walked closer and pointed to the aura he can only see but invisible to the others. "It's pink, like the cherry blossoms in spring. But, there's silver or gray spots like the falling snow in winter or like raindrops on rainy days. Sis (Name) is in love but she didn't want to say it because of Senior Sena."

"Me?!" Izumi looked at Sora in shock and cleared his throat. "Harukawa, can you keep your voice down? We're in a public area, you know?"

Saki's brain began to process the colors Sora just mentioned and connected it to related to her lessons in color symbolism and theories. "O-Oh..." 'Denial is a river in Egypt, indeed...'

"Sora knows but Sora couldn't help but to be curious about it because it's been a while since Sora last saw Sis (Name)'s color changed. Sis (Name) always have the same color around her, even after interacting with Master's big brothers." Sora explained and smiled towards you. "Sora will hug Sis (Name)~" Suddenly, Sora hugged you and gently squeezed you in his embrace. You couldn't help but to sigh and pat his head in return.

Saki moved out of the way, revealing you from behind you as she stepped aside like the traitor she is. "S-Saki...! Hide me..." She extended out her hand and stopped you from hiding behind her while Sora stopped you from walking closer to her. "Now, now, isn't this the right time to confess to your crush?"

"Crush?" Sora looked at Saki in confusion. "Does Sis (Name) have a crush?"

"Yes." Saki nods. "Remember the silver spots on her "color"?" She grinned and winked. "Guess who~"

You covered Sora's ears while your face flushed red in embarrassment. The blush reached your ears, making it clear that Sora said more than enough while Saki hinted more than enough than what you had expected. "Y-You know, Saki, let's just go back to the agency and pass my printed report to the boss..."

"Ah, yes, of course. We've lost track of time after chatting a lot." Saki pretended to be tired by stretching and walked ahead away from you. "I'll wait for you at the main entrance~"

"H-Hey, don't leave me here..." You held out your hand to reach her and sighed. Sora immediately let you go from his embrace and held your hand. "Sora wants to know if you really have changed because of Senior Sena. It's alright if Sis (Name) couldn't say it right now because she needs time, right?"

"I..." You were at a loss for words. You nodded at Sora's suggestion and patted his head. "If I am able to..."

"Then Sora will be here to cheer you on!" Sora beamed and smiled. His smile can be mistaken as the sun, since he is too bright to look at. "Sora will cast a magic spell to make you feel better and say your feelings from the bottom of your heart~!"

Unknown to the others, Izumi turned away to avoid looking at you and remained silent. He saw the gloves he gave to you, the one he sent to you with the plush. 'Aha... she's so cute...!' Izumi thought in his mind after he saw the blush on your face, how you averted your gaze from them, how you hid behind Saki because you are scared and shy towards the others, and the way you have the gifts he gave to you. That sight alone made him blush to the tip of his ears and his heart skipped multiple beats.

"Well, I must go. I don't want Saki to leave me behind after scurrying off..." You patted Sora's hand for the last time, making him let go of you and you walked away from the area. "See you next time, everyone~!" You waved your hand goodbye and formed a heart with your hands above your head. Arashi chuckled and waved back, Sora waved his hands in the air, and Natsume crossed his arms and smiled.

Izumi only covered his mouth with his hand, hiding his smile. He also wanted to say goodbye to you but before he could, you were gone. He held his sigh and furrowed his brows.

Sora also noticed this when Izumi's color changed. 'Senior Sena's color changed... Is Senior Sena sad...?'

W/N: I hate school. At least I have no problems since it's all over. I can't believe this took me nearly two months to finish this. I'm sorry. But thank @/aaaraas-things for the motivation to finish thisTT. Your words are highly appreciated. I have a one long wtiter's block when I wrote this so most parts are so random. Hehe Of course, I included Sora for the wingman gang as a gift for his birthday. A little belated but happy birthday to my sweet summer sunshine, my cute, little citrine ball, my favorite babie, Sora Harukawa. I included a few parts from the EnStage clips I found. If you know, you know. Expect me to disappear after two months lol

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teacute · 2 months ago

Text

My Heaven's Light

SUMMARY: Rollo managed to kidnap you before sending the NRC students to Fleur City's Waterways, believing he was saving you. Malleus and the others reach the tower, ring the Bell of Solace and rescue you. Malleus expresses his protective side and Rollo apologizes for kidnapping you.

CHARACTERS: Rollo Flamme VS Malleus Draconia (x Reader)

TAGS: GN Reader; Angst to Comfort; Jealousy

WARNING: Spoilers from Glorious Masquerade; Kidnapping

WORD COUNT: 4.220 Words

COMMENTS: Thinking about the fact that Rollo is the twisted version of Frollo and thinking of MC as Esmeralda, it is inevitable to imagine Rollo kidnapping MC. But not for the same reasons!

Rollo is a really complex character, but one I've wanted to write about for some time now. I plan to try writing more with him in the future.

Until then, I hope you enjoy this one. 🐲🦐🔔

By the way, do you have ANY idea how many times I've looked up synonyms for common words just to get as close as possible to Rollo's way of speaking? One thing is for sure: I am greatly expanding my English vocabulary with this.

Amidst the panic that the firelotuses were causing, both your colleagues and Professor Trein end up paying more attention to the flowers than to you.

As you move away from the flowers, you end up approaching one of the pillars. That's when you feel a hand covering your mouth and another holding your arm behind your back.

You are carried away through the shadows as you try to free yourself, but these attempts only make the hands hold you even tighter and run the risk of injuring your arm.

The person who is taking you leans over and whispers in your ear. “I beg you not do make this more complicated that it needs to be.” It's Rollo!

He takes you to a room adjacent to the hall and pushes you inside, making you fall into an armchair. Just before he closes the door to lock you inside you hear Grim's voice.

“[Y/N]? [Y/N]?! MY HENCH-HUMAN DISAPPEARED!”

No matter how loud you scream, or how much you bang on the door, the chaos outside is too loud for anyone to hear you. Eventually you realize something is going on, so you stop to listen to the conversation. Rollo had revealed himself and was talking to your NRC colleagues.

“My, my.” You hear Azul say. “That was quite a predictable villain line, you know.”

“Silence!” Rollo's voice echoed. “YOU'RE the villains here! And what's more, you flaunted your magic and mesmerized our good citizens with it... Just like you did with your prefect. You imprisoned them with you and poisoned their mind. The poor thing became numb to the absurdity after spending every day swimming in it. Mages use their magic to lead people astray and cloud the eyes of the virtuous public. It's sad state of affairs, but it's devastating when the victim is someone like [Y/N].”

“What have you done with [Y/N]?!” Malleus's powerful voice demands to know.

“For now, I am keeping them safe. But once I engulf the world in the fiery crimson of these flowers and strip every mage in Twisted Wonderland of their magic, then I will have saved them, and all those like them who suffer at your hands!”

“You have no idea of the atrocity you are insinuating, Flamme!” Not only does Malleus’s voice thunder, but the sky outside does too.

“And there he is, folks! The secret mastermind who was controlling the ‘final boss’ all along!” Idia says. “But what kind of mastermind jumps the gun and shows up this early? Dude has like, zero patience.”

“Could you not right now? You're ruining the moment.” Azul complains.

The discussion continues with Rollo revealing that his plan is already well underway. When the Bell of Solace rang for an unprecedented fourth time that night, it suffused the city with magic. The firelotuses aren't only in the school. They've spread throughout the city, and are sapping the energy from every mage living there. And after that, he opens the floor for everyone to fall into a pit.

“And those accursed mages, with Malleus Draconia foremost among them... They'll all be finished! Enjoy your time down below. Though I think you'll find it quite...draining. At long last... I shall finally mete out my justice.”

Some time later, the door opens and Rollo enters, extending his hand to you.

“Come. We must go to the Bell Tower. It is safer-”

What he didn't expect was for you to attack him with a tall candlestick. And you discover that in addition to being a promising mage, he also has excellent reflexes. He manages to dodge your attack and grab your wrists so you let go of the candlestick.

“I do not aim to harm you!” He says very seriously. “Please don't turn it into something I have to do.”

“Then what are you doing locking me here?”

“Preventing you from falling for the tricks of those magic-addled fools once again.” He comes closer, still grabbing you by the wrists. “You poor thing. Blinded by villains who wear an elusive mask of companions. But worry not, that tragic state of affairs shan't last much longer.” He brings his face even closer to yours. “Now, I will provide you with a choice. You will accompany me peacefully to the Bell Tower, where you will be safe by my side. Or you will make me forcefully assure your safety. Which one will be?”

If you choose to resist, Rollo will pin your arm behind your back again and place a handkerchief over your mouth and nose. Whatever is in that handkerchief, will render you unconscious. And you will wake up on the top floor of the Bell Tower, lying on a blanket.

You see Rollo with his back to you, looking down at the bright scarlet below. You stand up.

“For the Righteous Judge's sake, don't try to go against me again.” Rollo says, without turning to you. “Even without the use of my magic you will not be able to overpower me.” Still without taking his eyes off the outside he calms down to invite you. “Would you be so kind as to join me in gazing out over the city?”

If you choose to accompany him peacefully to the Bell Tower, Rollo will release your wrists with a smile and give you his arm for you to intertwine with yours.

“I'm glad my judgment of you is aligning with the truth.” He says calmly as he guides. “To remain so virtuous amidst the chaos of magic, you must surely be one of heaven's lights.” You see now a new smile, a peaceful one.

The climb up the tower was silent, as you needed to breathe to climb all those stairs. When you finally reach the top, Rollo extends his hand to you. If you give him yours, he will guide you like a gentleman to a point where you can both see the ominously lit city below.

After your choice:

“Ahh, the city's turned a marvelous shade of crimson... How cleansing it is. I've never felt so at peace before.”

“Why are you doing this, Rollo?”

“Once magic vanish from the world forever, no one will have to suffer with its consequences. Magic is not something to be lionized. It is an evil temptation that, behind its illusory wonders, only causes pain and suffering. If it wasn't dangerous, it wouldn't be like a toxin in your body... However... I wonder how much you actually know about it.”

You look at him as if to ask what he means by that.

“Are you even from this world [Y/N]?” He finally looks at you. “I don't know what it is, but there's something about you that's different from every non-magic user I've ever met. And the circumstances surrounding you are quite... abnormal.”

You choose not to respond.

“I see you have your secrets. I have mine owns as well." He takes his handkerchief to his face. "If you don't feel comfortable talking about your past, then allow me the right not to talk about mine either.”

He puts the handkerchief back in his pocket, and you observe the city in silence for a moment, until he speaks again.

“They will come here. I don't know which students will be strong enough to reach the tower, but Malleus Draconia will certainly be one of those who will be able to reach me. And when that happens, I will guarantee that he will be the first to fall.”

“Why all this obsession with Tsunotarou?”

“Obsession is a very strong word, I simply...” He stops to process what you just said. “I beg your pardon, but am I correct in assuming you were referring to Malleus Draconia just now?”

“Of course, he was who you were talking about just... Oh, I called him Tsunotarou didn't I? Sorry. But yes, I was talking about Malleus.”

“T-Tsunotarou?” He takes the handkerchief back to his face. “Is it some kind of mocking nickname?”

“No! I mean yes, it's a nickname, but no, it's not to mock him. It's a long story but that's what Grim and I call him.”

“Does he know about this... name?”

“Oh, yes. He even likes me calling him by that, he thinks it's funny. Or at least that's what it seams. He smiles every time he hears me say that name.” Just like you were smiling talking about him. “He calls me Child of Man.”

“You have a playful nickname for each other.” Rollo whispers with the handkerchief covering his angry (jealous) expression. “Soon enough you'll feel disgusted by it.”

“Sorry, I didn't understand.”

“No, nothing. Pay me no mind.” He takes the handkerchief away from his mouth. “Ah... I hear the firelotuses rustling... Those wretched Night Raven College mages are making their way up the tower, aren't they? Villains are always so stubborn.” Before you could complain about his words, he puts his hand on your arm and continues. “I must get you in a safer place. Those monsters won't give up without a fight.”

“Who do you think we’re calling-”

He ignores your reprimand and takes you by the arm to a small room that they will not have access to without first going through Rollo.

“I am deeply sorry for what I'm about to do, but I need to make sure you do not alert them to your location.” With his magic, he makes ropes appear to tie you up and a piece of cloth to silence you. “See how despicable magic is? An atrocity like trapping you is completed in seconds. But I will release you as soon as the danger has passed.” And he closes the door.

“Here we are.” You hear Malleus’s voice. “The very top floor of the bell tower.”

“The Bell of Solace stands out even at night.” Azul comments. “Look how it glints in the moonlight.”

“Now to ring it, wipe out the flowers, rescue [Y/N] and finish this stupid pop-up quest for good.” Idia points out.

“But to do that...” Malleus returns. “We must first pay our respects to the host of the party.”

This was Rollo's cue to reveal himself. Which he does.

“At long last, you've arrived. The greater the villains, the more they insist on stopping around. Deplorable.”

“Where are they Flamme?” Malleus demands to know.

“Safe, of course, away from you and your wicked lies.”

“Okay, I really need to ask.” Idia says. “What does our magic-less Prefect have to do with this flower plan and ending magic thing? Why kidnap them? They have no power to stop you. Unless you kidnapped them to keep them for yourself. Good taste tho. But you only met them literally today! That’s like the ultimate desperate creep move.”

“My actions involving your Prefect have nothing to do with personal motives. Innocent victims must be rescued from your evil hands! And that is exactly what I did.”

“I don't know if you would use the word ‘Innocent’ like that if you actually knew them.” Azul comments with a smirk.

“If this is true, it will be proof of your corruption!”

The flowers reach the bell and the exchange of words follows a course that ends with the three fighting Rollo after Malleus said:

“Regardless of your reasons, you will not have your way. I shall stop you for all the fallen in this city... For the wonderful person you kidnapped... For the people awaiting us at school... For Briar Valley... And for myself. You see, I harbor a particularly potent animus toward you. A feeling aggravated by the disrespectful actions you had towards who is dearest to me. I shall eradicate the firelotuses and put all to rights. With the Bell of Solace itself!”

They lose the first fight against Rollo. And it's after that that Idia reveals what they read in Rollo's diary that they found in the fireplace. About his brother. About him not being able to do anything to save him... And you hear Idia going down a not so empathetic path, to which you would react with a facepalm if your hands weren't tied.

You hear Rollo getting angry and starting to lose his composure, Azul attacking him with Deuce's signature spell, with whom he had made a deal, the astonished reaction when seeing that Rollo is still standing, and finally, you hear Rollo use his signature spell and the sound of flames bursting forth.

A new fight, even more violent, until the sound of the flames died away and...

“Rollo collapsed, and his flames went out...” Azul says. “That means Malleus won, right?”

“Dude, Malleus is out of breath.” Idia says “I can see why he wanted us clear. We could've easily been collateral damage.”

Rollo says he accepted his defeat, but only to try to attack Malleus one last time when he turned his back on him. He failed, and Malleus rang the Bell of Solace, making all the flowers wither.

“The firelotuses...” Rollo was sobbing. “My flowers, my salvation, they're all withering away... You VILLAINS. What have you done?!”

“More important than that.” Malleus approached, his figure towering over Rollo's on the ground. “What have YOU done to [Y/N]?”

“Why do you show yourself so worried? A being like you would never truly care for someone like them. Admit your true intentions! You want to see them suffer on the long term.”

You finally manage to get your feet close to the door. You hear the worried voices of Azul and Idia telling Malleus not to succumb to Rollo's provocations. And you knock on the door with your feet so they can hear you.

You hear hurried footsteps coming your way, see Malleus opening the door, and look down in horror.

“[Y/N]!” He quickly reaches down to free you, breaking the ropes with his own hands and untying the piece of cloth around your mouth. He would have preferred to use magic to ensure he didn't hurt you, but he was relatively weak in that regard. “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”

You say you're fine, but that doesn't stop Malleus from picking you up in his arms.

“Is [Y/N] hurt?!” Azul asked, worried.

“They say they're fine. But just in case.”

“Something tells me that Malleus just really wanted to live the scene of the hero who picks up the princess in their arms after saving her from the clutches of the villain who kidnapped her.” Idia comments, just between him and Azul. “Hey, no judgments. This is what I call sense of opportunity.”

Rollo was furious, but he would never admit how jealous he was. Not even to himself.

You watched the shows that your NRC colleagues prepared. The music was beautiful and they sang so well! Especially Malleus. After that, you all talked for a bit in a group before Malleus disappeared. Only for you to see him dance with Rollo. Seriously? All that and he's still going to dance with Rollo before he dances with you?!

You dance with the others, until Malleus appears to bow to you and invite you to dance with him. However, to his surprise, you look sullen.

“Is there something wrong?” He asks you. “Did I do something that displeased you?”

You answer yes, that after everything, the first person he danced with was Rollo. He chuckles, and you get even more sulky.

“Forgive me, but I could not resist provoking Flamme one last time. That, and warn him never to even come near you again.” He says with a smile, which makes it a little scary. “I jest. Well, partially. I did threaten him if he did anything to you again.” He pauses to see if you would cheer up a bit, but you still didn't seem completely satisfied. He smirks. “I must admit, a little jealousy can actually be charming and cute.”

Other people wanted to dance with Malleus, but he asked them all to, please, wait a little longer.

“You are creating a quite long waiting line you know? I will not dance with anyone else until I have my desired dance with my beloved.” He smiles smugly when he sees your reaction.

You give him your hand, he kisses the back of it and brings your body closer to his, placing his other hand on your waist. And you dance together.

“Please be careful.” He says as you dance. You look down at your feet, confused. “Fufu. No my dear, I wasn't referring to your dancing.” The sweet smile becomes more serious. “I was referring to Rollo Flamme. I have reason to believe that, after just one day, he has already recognized your charm. He does not convince me that he did that to you just because he believed he was saving you. But worse than that...”

His expression turns sad and you feel his hand pull you closer.

“He still have hatred towards me and wants to get read of all the mages. Under different circumstances, I would not fear his attacks. I would even invite him to try. But with you... If he realizes how much you mean to me... Despite what happened, I don't believe he has that kind of character, but if he reaches a state of despair where his hatred for me is stronger than the attachment he might feel for you...”

There’s a pause. His expression becomes more peaceful.

“I learned an expression that the citizens here have. Heaven's Light. We don't know what this place called heaven is for sure, but according to some records from the past, it would have been such a wonderful place that it was not even located on land. It was somewhere above the clouds. I believe even the stories of the Lord of the Underworld spoke of a similar place. They say that the name ‘Heaven's Light’ was given by the Kindly Bell Ringer to the woman he fell in love with, for being such a caring and kind person to him.”

He caresses your cheek with one of his hands.

“I understand him perfectly. From the story I was told, I can only believe that I too was blessed with my own Heaven's Light. And just like the Kindly Bell Ringer, I will do whatever it takes to protect it.”

You didn't even realize that Malleus has led you to a more secluded place. Only when you saw that the two were hidden by the shadows and a pillar and he began to bring his face closer to yours. “My Heaven's Light.” He whispers before kissing you.

After your dance with Malleus, he went to dance with the other people who also wanted such an honor and you went to dance with some of your other colleagues.

You were finishing dancing with Sebek when Rollo approached you. Both you and he startled when Sebek quickly placed himself between the two of you.

“What are your intentions?” Sebek inquired with hostility.

“My intentions are not vile.” Rollo replies, hiding his displeasure at the way Sebek is talking to him with his composure. “I would only like to be able to invite [Y/N] to dance.”

“I cannot allow it! My orders are to keep this human safe and away from you.”

Rollo takes his handkerchief to his face, holding back the urge to respond to his audacity and insulting words. However, you tell Sebek that it's okay and that you would like to accept Rollo's invitation. Both he and Sebek are surprised.

“B-but...” He had those sad puppy eyes, eager to fulfil his duty. “My liege told me... he entrusted me to protect you.”

And you say he can still do it. He can watch you while you dance with Rollo. And if something really happens, he can intervene.

“But what if it's too late?”

You say that Rollo wouldn't do anything like that in front of all those people. And that Sebek could tell Malleus that it was your fault for telling him not to stop you.

“But... *sigh* Why are you humans so stubborn? Fine. But I won't take my eyes off you. Even if I have to stop myself from blinking!... Be careful.”

Rollo extends his hand to you and you place yours in his to accept his invitation to dance. He guides you very gently.

“I wanted to apologize for the way I treated you.” He tells you while dancing with you. “I never meant to be rude to you. And regardless of what the students of Night Raven College tell you, at no point did I intend to harm you.” Your expression shows your suspicion. “I don't intend to apologize for doing what I concluded was the best way to save you at the time. I only apologize for the... atrocious way in which I did it. I shouldn't have forced you to come with me. But I feared what those spiteful mages might do to you in a moment of desperation.”

“They wouldn't hurt me!” You say, with certainty in your voice.

“How could you be so sure of that?”

“Because, unlike you, I know them.”

He looks you intently in the eyes, and sighs. The music comes to an end, as does your dance. You bow to each other.

“I find it pitiful seeing someone magic-devoid like you stuck in that villains' lair.” He tells you when you both straighten up. “I am inclined to make my utmost efforts to have you reside in Nobel Bell College instead, however I've already come to the sorrowful realization that it is your heart that keeps you hostage in that island. But before we part, I insist that you know that if you ever find yourself overwhelmed by those circumstances that involve magic, do let me know.” He gives you that subtle smile of his. “I will be glad to provide you with my support and assistance at any moment.”

You give him a smile back, accepting his offer.

“But, just to guarantee that you don't forget my heartfelt offering...” He reaches into his pocket, takes out his handkerchief and extends it to you. “Here it is said that handkerchiefs are powerful guardians of the memories of a loved one. It is common to offer them when we don't want to be forgotten by someone. Despite my mistakes, I would still like you to have the most pleasant memory of me possible." You accept his gift. "I confess that my biggest wish at the moment was to have one of yours too.” Without his handkerchief, he covers his mouth with his hand. “But that is just a mere whim of mine.” He takes his hand away from his face and smiles again “Not even in my wildest dreams did I think I would have so much pleasure in meeting someone from Night Raven College.” He gives you one last bow. “May the Bell of Solace allow our paths to cross again.”

He turned to walk away, but you wanted to do one last thing. You had also bought a handkerchief just like his when you were doing your tour of the city, and you wouldn't need two. You ask him to wait and he turns back to you.

“It doesn't have to be a mere whim.” You say, handing him the handkerchief you had kept with you. Perhaps the sign of a second chance.

He receives your handkerchief and looked at it with his natural smile, but his eyes were different, they had a small, almost imperceptible sparkle.

“I will keep it as one of my most cherished possessions. Thank you, [Y/N].”

“Should I assume this was some sort of revenge?” You hear Malleus's voice say suddenly as you step away from the dancing crowd.

You didn't know he was there, and so close. You look at him and he's smiling wryly.

“I didn't give him any gifts, though. Should I have bought a souvenir too? Perhaps make a bouquet of those crimson flowers he is so fond of.”

“It seems you were right, Tsunotarou.” You say with a sly smile. “A little jealousy can actually be charming and cute.”

Malleus makes that cute pout.

“I told you to be careful.” He says, not as a scolding, but as a concerned request.

You tell him that nothing bad happened, that Rollo wanted to apologize for what he did to you and for him not to blame Sebek because you were the one who accepted Rollo's invitation.

“Don't worry, I know Sebek is a loyal guard. And that you are the one with a kind heart. I told Sebek that I believed him when he told me that it was of your own free will that you were dancing with Flamme. It is in your character to give others the opportunity to explain and apologize. I know this well because it's one of the things I love most about you.” His pout comes back. “However...” He smiles smugly. “I would be more reassured if you spend the rest of the ball close to me. Just in case.”

“Just in case of what, exactly?” You ask.

“Just in case someone else becomes so captivated by you that they want to lock you up in a tower. Which reminds me that in some tales the kidnapper arrange a dragoon to guard the kidnapped.” His smile becomes even more smug and slightly threatening. “Fu fu fu. I would like to see them trying.”

If you would like to read more from me, you can find it in my pinned post: INDEX

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