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Sang Sur les Roses	By : Saoirse Category: +S to Z > Utena Views: 2873 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Utena, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 10
- 11
- 12
Ruka jingled his keys until the one for his dorm�s front
door slid down the ring too stubborn to put his groceries down. He had the most
awful craving for his mother�s okayu in Greek philosophy that he cut his last
class and went to the supermarket instead. Normally his mother would add a
little chopped green onion and diced pork as per the home remedy, but he
decided to skip the onion and wasn�t up to haggling with the butcher (he had no
talent for it unlike his parents) and purchased a bag of long Japanese rice,
instant clear broth udon, a six-pack of diet coke and fried tofu. �Konnichi wa
Ruka.� He dropped his plastic bag, keys jammed in the lock and spun to find
Shiori partially concealed by the shadows. The single window at the end of his
corridor let in the setting ruby sun, it was an ideal hiding place.

�What do you want?�

�Is that all you can say after all these months?�

He gathered his belongings
and unlocked the door without opening it. �It�s more than I care to say.�

�You lined your door with silver,� she changed the
subject. �Interesting tactic if not immature. Think something�s jump out at you
in the dead of night?� He leaned the back of his head against the door.

�Let�s just say my grandfather�s ghost has made me more
vigilant.�

�Oh yes, congrats on your installation as new alpha.�

�Arigato.� Shiori dithered and Ruka was patient
studying the small woman pretend to adjust the ruffle on her collar. �Was there
anything else?�

�Yes. I really came to deliver a message. Actually a bit
of advice.�

�This should be dazzling.�

Shiori puffed her chest. �Keep a distance from Tenjou.�

�Why, pray?� He smiled spitefully.

�Ruka if you give a damn about your personal safety, just
do it. Touga is on the warpath,� she sounded genuinely apprehensive. �He�s
already dismissed an algebra teacher that assigned her a male tutor when she
got that 38 on her last exam. The tutor was put on suspension after he got
Nanami to set him up for smuggling test answer keys. He got off lucky with just
a month, Miki�s tutoring her now.� Her speech was hurried and she needed to
pause for oxygen, the streetlamp went on outside and the jaundiced light displayed
Shiori�s wan face. She was sallow and her eyes were ringed purple from lack of
sleep. �Every time the days get longer it always starts. Saionji hasn�t showed
his face in class or the dojo since Tenjou whipped him in the duel. The word is
Kozue attacked the music teacher and she�s been obsessing over some new guy,
but nobody�s seen him. Juri-san disappears after fencing and nobody knows
anything, Nanami and her wenches have been getting more heavy-handed by the
day. She�s even got the dance coordinators under her thumb directing the annual
stage production herself! It�s horrific! Miki�s the only one remotely normal
but he�s been holing himself up in his dorm with the piano working on this
score that�s never perfect and never ends� his room looks like a paper tornado.
And Touga�� she scoffed incongruously. �Touga hasn�t changed really, just got a
hell of a lot worse. He�s been seen openly with the Chairman.� Ruka dropped his
bag and the rice sack exploded; white grains spewed over floor like snow. �It�s
like the goddamn Mile High Club in that office of his!� She pounded a fist into
the white and teal paneled wall. �It�s a conveyor belt in there� up to three
girls at once. One of my friends didn�t come out until seven hours later and
she could barely walk! And she went in alone� if you could imagine her face�
marks on her body, sounding like she�d been knocking back sak� all day. She
stank of their come I wanted to throw up.�

�Why tell me, Shiori? What would you have me do?� Ruka
was facing away from her face and repugnant, however true story.

�I don�t know dammit! I had to tell somebody! Someone
sane at least! God��

�He can�t even help you either,� he shook his head.
Shiori beseeched him sinking to the floor, her white nylon covered knees bitten
by rice and dirtying from the dust gripped his arm. Ruka snapped it back
automatically.

�Ruka-san onegai�� Game playing already? It wasn�t enough
that the devil played dolls with him once and he seemingly returned for another
round, but now Shiori? �You�re the only one I have, the only one I ever had!
You�re so strong and always thinking ahead of everyone.� �No not everyone,�
he thought. �Tell me please, what should I do?�

�Leave.� His iron hard intonation caused Shiori to
relinquish her grasp. �Leave this school Shiori. The town. The country, even.
If you entertain any hope of escape you�ll do the only smart thing and leave.�
He opened the door and went into the hall closet for his Dirt Devil upright. By
the time he replaced the vacuum bag the pizza deliveryman arrived and he sat to
down to enjoy his extra large supreme and cold tofu he faintly recalled
Shiori�s parting words, a name that meant nothing to him but something to the
woman he was to avoid: Arata Nanase.

* * *

Ruka vainly wondered at Shiori�s game plan as he sprinted
to the East Hall. Was she trying to help him? The dormitory looked dead but he
picked up on the sounds a mile back, a full orchestra pounded the walls his
cries were drowned out under the earsplitting music as he trod the stairs to the
second floor. �UTENA! UTENA!� He bashed her door open to find the curtains
fluttering in the open window in a darkened, empty room. The overdramatic
strings were approaching a crescendo from the vibrating speakers on the Aiwa
boom box and indifferent to its owner�s feelings he yanked the plug from the
outlet not bothering to look for the off button. �UTENA!� He shouted leaning
out the window. He was about to holler once more when he saw a lump�s
silhouette on the side of the dresser. �Utena?� Ruka squatted. She was curled
up in the cranny between her twin bed and dresser, her pink head bowed on her
knees. By her feet was a jewel case, no titles nor artists� names on the inside
card just printed in pink kanji were ai, inochi, shin ni and hitori- love, life,
death and loneliness.

�Himemiya?� Utena lifted her head feeling the Rose
Bride�s little dark hand shaking her from the lurid dream that ensnared her.

�Utena�� She blinked and Ruka�s concerned face came into
focus.

�Ruka�? Doushite?� He opened the CD tray and saw
scribbled on the disc in black marker Rachmaninoff- Vocalise, Albinoni- Adagio,
Mahler- Adagietto and Barber- Adagio for Strings. All properly
befitting the ambiance. �Utena, do you know Arata Nanase?�

�Nanase-san? She�s on the volleyball team with me� but
she hasn�t shown up to practice for a week. Everybody�s worried.�

�I think I know where she is.�

Utena elevated her
shoulders. �You do? Where?�

* * *

The gold gondola cage clanked shut then Ruka pulled the
lever and they descended. The only cryptic response Ruka gave to answer Utena�s
questions was that he was taking her to Nanase. Why would she be in the tower?
The gondola halted and they alighted. �We�re here,� he announced. Utena looked
back and heard the car hum portentously as it traveled back to the main floor.
She felt deserted and stripped naked. They were in a subbasement storage
facility, jet fans groggily whined framed in cloudy tiled walls and miles of
huge rectangular ventilation ducts veined the ceiling. Cobwebs swayed like crystal
beading on chandeliers from the oxidized grating. Old and broken desks piled up
along the walls, boxes of school texts and pencils, sports equipment, and empty
glass display cases cracked and discolored. They stopped at a door labeled
�MAINTENANCE� Utena felt the cool breath of air conditioning on her legs from
the vents at the foot of the door. She entered ahead of Ruka into a concrete
locker room. A set of discarded teal lockers from Ohtori bygone days aligned
the wall with a door opened exposing a torn centerfold of a nude woman taped to
the inside, there was a long gym bench bolted to the floor, skeletal shelves
holding cleaning supplies and tools, floor polishers, brooms, rakes, and loops
of rust-colored hose hung from the wall. Ruka led her deeper and there was
another partitioning similar to a batting cage with a single dim bulb overhead
lamp with a cloth hospital screen blocking her view.

�Nanase-san?� Utena slightly pushed the screen back.

�Utena-san�� Utena smacked both hands over her mouth to
prevent her screams. She was unsure what that thing with Nanase�s voice laying
on the hospital cot was because of the poor light and darkness obscuring it.

�Na� na� se� san�� Utena squeaked her friend replied with
indistinct wheezing noises. The girl�s freakish wet amber eyes were unusually
protuberant and Utena could make out the lower half of her face was elongated
somewhat outwardly.

�She�s in excruciating pain,� Ruka informed her,
�whatever they�ve given her has left her more than likely delusional.� Her body
concealed beneath a thin white sheet was contorted and paralyzed in that
agonizing position. Utena attempted to lift a corner of the sheet when Ruka
stopped her. �Dame! Don�t torture yourself like that.� She�d seen enough
spotting a fine coating of fur on the flesh. Ruka snapped his head to the side.
�We have to go now!�

�But-�

�Now Tenjou!� They fled back into the locker room.
Moments later the shuffle of leather shoed feet were heard, Ruka silently
fitted the grating over the duct access and he and Utena waited staring through
the criss-crossed wiring. They assembled in the cage, the Student Council
filing in according to rank with Touga leading and Miki bringing up the rear.
Touga with his hands clasped behind his back was stoic, Saionji brooding folded
his arms over his chest leaned against the wall, Juri hugging her elbows was
uninterested and Miki his eyes dashed from one corner of the room to the other
looked like a frightened rabbit. Anthy carrying a black leather bag trundled
in, Utena was about to speak when Ruka pressed a finger to her lips. Suddenly
the air constricted like whip being snapped and everyone save for the Rose
Bride stood at attention. A deliberate slow cadence of approaching footsteps
made Utena dig her nails tautly into the piping�s steel. A man taller than
Touga and Saionji confronted the council, dressed in a red satin priest�s robe
the billowing sleeves trimmed in gold and the hem dusted the floor. Utena could
not see his face for the ceiling lamp only that his long silvery lavender
ponytail was bound at the nape of his neck by a fat teal bead.

�Is everything in readiness?� His voice richer than the
darkest chocolate and deadlier than cobra�s venom asked.

�Hai.� Touga answered.

�Excellent. Let us proceed.� In unison Touga and Saionji
bowed and walked over to Nanase�s bed. They took away the screen and carried to
her bedside a melmac endtable. Anthy opened the leather bag on the foot of the
bed and pulled out a white satin tablecloth, flapped it and draped it over the
platform. She handed candles to Juri and Miki who began lining them around the
cage and lit them. Several little objects were laid on the table Utena couldn�t
make out until Anthy returned back to the bag. A small glass oil decanter, a
little shallow golden bowl, a gold incense stick holder, and a gold candlestick
holder with a fresh thick purple candle. Anthy filled the bowl with oil and
inserted an incense stick into the sand. She then handed the robed man a folded
bit of purple linen, he kissed it and unfurled it to drape it around his neck.
It was a stole with gold runic lettering. Touga lit the candle and Saionji the
incense. �Clan,� the man declared, �lend me your power!� The Seitokai gathered
encircling the bed joining hands spreading out as much as their arm spans
allowed them. Anthy leant over and touched Nanase�s eyes, the girl reared back
and roared with pain. Chains rattled violently and Utena realized she was
encumbered. Anthy set the bag on the floor as the man began to chant in Latin
quietly slowly raising his voice when the room began to tremble. Ruka and Utena
panicked over the duct�s sturdiness as they too endured the quaking and held
fast. Caught in an ecstatic trance the man sang as the Student Council with
their heads bowed and eyes squeezed tight concentrated amidst Nanase�s roars.
Anthy withdrew something else from the bag and presented it to the man on open
palms. It was a dagger and Ruka had to physically restrain Utena from kicking
open the access port. The priest unsheathed the steel blade from the white
scabbard; it was a magnificent weapon a relic from antiquity. The pommel stone
was a flawless ruby cut in the shape of a rose and coiling up the golden hilt
were emeralds. The priest held it in both fists and aimed it over Nanase�s
throat. His chants were zealous and he lifted the blade as though he were
reaching the end of his canto preparing himself to rip through the girl�s flesh
putting her out of misery when Anthy shouted:

�Look! Look!� The Student Council dropped hands and the
room was silent as the grave. All waited with bated breath and the priest
allowed himself to drop his arms safely to his sides.

�Ah! A miracle!� He exclaimed. Utena saw Juri�s eyes
reflexively narrow for a millisecond. Backing away from the cot Utena saw not
Nanase but a peacefully slumbering beige wolf. She blacked out.

* * *

Ruka didn�t trust Utena and ordered her to spend the
night in his dorm. She was unhinged and vomited four times; worried that she
might start purging stomach acids Ruka force-fed her cold pizza. He took the
sofa and Utena his bed, that night both slept with open eyes.

* * *

She insisted despite better judgment to go to class the
following day. Utena sat with glazed eyes throughout lessons and roamed the
halls aimlessly. The final bell rang and she sat on a bench avoiding the
fencing hall when she spotted Nanase acting as though nothing was out of the
ordinary. Utena was about to call out to her when she saw Juri following right
behind. The two women stopped at a classroom conversed for a moment then Nanase
waited outside the closed door.

�I�m so glad we have a full house this afternoon,� the
instructor said. �As you probably can guess personal matters I was forced to
attend kept me from school. I trust that my substitute fulfilled my role more
than adequately. And now for the moment you�ve been waiting for�� Utena saw
Nanase open and shut the door behind her. The pretty girl dropped to a deep bow
before her classmates. Applause erupted and shouts of �Nanase-chan� from excited
friends were heard.

�Domo arigato gozaimasu, Richijou,� Nanase said.

�Maa maa! Such formality,� the instructor scoffed. �Call
me Akio everyone does.� Nanase drank in the long legged older man dressed in
casual black trousers and burgundy satin shirt. His skinny black tie was his
sole link to regulation. Ohtori Akio, his name suited him justly. Nanase took a
seat beside her friend Kozue, both girls hugging affectionately. She shook
hands with Miki and nodded to Juri who responded with one of her own. �And now
my beloved baby sister Anthy will continue her lecture on society and ancient
rites. Anthy?�

�Thank you Onii-sama. Will you please take out your books
and turn to chapter 13, Arata-san share with Kozue-san please and I will put an
order for yours later.� As Anthy delivered her speech under the loving gaze of
the Deputy Chairman taking his seat on a tall biology stool off to the side
Nanase tossed her eyes between Saionji and Touga sitting two rows up in the
front. What a dilemma! Touga was easy as pie, but Saionji didn�t seem to bother
with anyone as of late. Nanami ignored her, the princess bitch. In due time
she�d deal with her and her maids. Utena stood listening to Anthy speaking for
a few moments and walked to the dorm underappreciated and feeling cheated.

TSUZUKU
- 10
- 11
- 12
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Sang Sur les Roses