Faux Chiaroscuro

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eina Naoki was many things, but a morning person wasn't one of them. 
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The irate screeching of her alarm clock scratched against tired eardrums as sunlight leaked through the cracked curtains, blinding her with its declaration of morning's arrival. It was here, and there was nothing Reina could do about it, to her great misfortune. It was on day like this in which she sorely missed the weekend and its wonderful gift of uninterrupted slumber... she went through the same cycle, the same routine each week; one would think she'd have grown used to it by now. With a reluctant groan, Reina rolled out of bed, mentally preparing for the long day ahead of her. 
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It didn't take long to get dressed and navigate her way out of the messy avalanche that was her room, and before Reina was even truly awake, she found herself absentmindedly walking through the academy's halls, her destination: Dreaded First Class of the Day. Scarlet hair lie disheveled around her shoulders, a strand or two sticking out where it shouldn't be as she suppressed the yawn that threatened to escape from slightly chapped lips. Just in the nick of time, Reina arrived with one of the last waves of students, each taking their seat with a few murmurs and quiet conversations here or there. She tuned it out, not entirely inclined to eavesdrop on things that didn't exactly pertain to her interests. Luckily, she was able to acquire a seat near the back of the class; it was her usual spot, and it allowed for her to learn without the pressure of eyes on her back or the anxiety that came from being at the front of the classroom. 
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Sculpting – not exactly her most prominent skill, but a class that benefited her general art major nonetheless. New mediums were always welcomed, and expanding her horizons was always a joy, even if it was too early for Reina to actually comprehend anything. At least it wasn't a general education class; if she dared doze off in math, that would be equivalent to the end of days. Lose focus, and suddenly you've missed a step to an equation rendered unsolvable... at least here, she could allow her creativity to flow without too much concentration or thought. It was fine though, Reina had time to wake herself up during the lecture, and from experience, she knew she'd be more or less prepared when things shifted to more of a free work time period. Lavender eyes blinked once, twice, acutely aware of the faint bags that hung beneath them, heavy with the weight of a new day. 

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Theora Katou | 438 words | I'm a lil rusty, forgive me ;w; its been a while

TEMPLATE BY ANNECORDELIA OF ADOXOGRAPHY

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Theora smiled at herself in the mirror. She was perfect. She sipped her coffee and gave a little wink. "You're gonna knock 'em dead, Director." She said. It was a ritual, one she practiced every morning. Not out of habit, not out of some belief that it would come true if she said so, but purely because it was a new day and she had the self confidence of a woman ten times as talented as she was. With her foot, she spun the featureless box that held her mini coffee maker around to face the wall and slid it under the bed. Not getting caught with that if the dorm mother came around.

She was up early today, earlier than her roommate even. Theora preferred later classes, and, most of the time, she got them. Her teachers were fellow theater folk and theater folk preferred the night. Two eight o'clocks in one day was too many, not to mention two sixes. But she had set this up in advance. Theora needed some specialty work on her latest creation, a glorious script that would bring a whole new level of fame and brilliance to an old classic. And, by coincidence, herself. But she needed an artist, several honestly, so she had gone around and asked several art teachers if she could sit in on their classes to observe.

With one last cheerful wink into the mirror, she walked out the door and started off to class. Several minutes later, she ran back in the door and grabbed her pendant. Today was game day. Carp versus the dreaded Giants and she was not going to let the side down. She threw an oversized jersey over her uniform and put her good luck token into her pocket.

Thanks to this absence of thought, she was runing late and the class seemed to be already in progress by the time she arrived. A fair bit of hustle and bustle was going on so she walked up to the teacher and greeted her. She made the general thanks for the opportunity and explained the jersey was over her uniform for the purposes of not getting the uniform dirty. It all went down a treat and so Theora slipped her way off to the side of the classroom and had a seat where she could see everyone working on the projects. She didn't know much about sculpting but in theater, you never knew what sort of prop you'd need next.

She sipped her coffee and pulled out her notebook. With coffee in one hand, notebook balanced on her lap, and a pen in the other hand, she began to take notes. Less on the projects the girls were working on and far more copious notes on the girls themselves. A few even merited nicknames and she added a few diagrams for the illicit affairs they were sharing with other girls in the class. It was all very detailed and Theora was very much enjoying herself.

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he hadn't noticed the odd (wo)man out, not until everyone slowly fell into place and the classroom began to quiet down. Following alongside the usual agenda, Reina proceeded to diligently scribble down notes on the teacher's lecture; technique, structure, material. Anything that came out of the teacher's mouth ended up in ink on her notebook, though her handwriting might've appeared as chicken scratch to any with the misfortune of gazing upon her information-filled yet dastardly unorganized notebook. But that's how it always started out – at some point, meticulous notes gave way to tiny doodles in the margins that grew and grew like a little plague of sketches until Reina found herself with one or two less pages to take notes on. 
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Now that that was done with, Reina lazily gazed around the room, her cheek perched upon her hand as she briefly lingered on each of her classmates, noticing the small, insignificant differences in hair style, hair cut, uniform wrinkles... oh, is that a piercing? That might not carry over well for them. The redhead sighed, her conscience on the brink of dozing off until she spotted an unfamiliar face to the side of the classroom. Had she always been there? No... Reina would've noticed. So then why had she appeared out of nowhere so far into the year? 
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The girl stood out among the sea of purple and grey, and Reina's eyes were drawn to the red and white jersey that gifted a layer of color over the normally bland uniform. Mmm, she wasn't all too familiar with sports and the like, but something about it looked familiar... well, she best not dwell on it too long; not that Reina had an issue with that when the rest of the newcomer's appearance was rather striking. Beautiful blonde hair, wavy and alluring, as if she'd tied back little rays of sunlight. Her complexion was a bit pale, but it complimented her other features, especially the eyes that shone blue like the vast sky above on a clear day, tucked away behind a cute pair of glasses. Not once did it cross Reina's mind that she might've been staring much longer than she should be, but how could she look away... not to be gay or anything, but she was jaw-droppingly gorgeous. And, well, probably didn't belong in this class. That was the more reasonable explanation, and Reina decided to go with that for her own well being. 

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Theora Katou | 408 words | xxx

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As she watched the girls take notes, Theora was growing impatient. She didn't want to see them learn, she wanted to see their skills bloom. She sipped her coffee and pretended to analytically examine each and every girl. There were some pretty ones. Oh so many pretty artists that she might like to see take to the hands of other pretty artists and birth great works of passionate art. She licked her lips and savored the bitter taste of coffee that remained. Perhaps she might not leave the classroom with a toy after all, but certainly her notebook would be filled with the dainty kisses of a thousand muses or was it musae. Being an artiste of her caliber, she ought to know such things. Regardless, she had been touched and would record every brilliant love that was hidden beneath the covers of this classroom of art and artist.

But what was this, she was not the only one here with a roving eye. A redhead, far too few at this school. Redheads were a special breed. You rarely got a natural one in theater, too boisterous, too loud, too brash, but oh so lovely. Nothing spoke louder of the character's personality than flaming locks. A redhead was rare but the redheaded character was a very notable one. You certainly didn't forget them for a time and they were quite often the focus. If you weren't careful, they would steal the show otherwise. Oh for a chance to tame that spirit and make it dance and shine for the masses.

But Theora didn't betray her thoughts, not yet. She smiled at the girl. Likely she wanted to know what they were being examined for. By a younger student no less, it was a mystery. Theora liked the mystery but she was not there to be acknowledged. She was the Director. Waiting in the wings, standing back, keeping track, making sure everything went properly. She curled up the left side of her mouth into a teasing smirk and met the girl's stare directly. She took a sip of her coffee, not breaking eye contact and with the hand holding her pencil she made a small pointing gesture at the notepad on her leg and then a shoo-ing motion with her fingers. Back to your notes, firecracker, Theora thought. Ignore the mistress behind the curtain.

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h... her smile was quite nice too, and it took Reina a few moments to notice that she'd been caught staring. It wasn't until the girl looked directly at her, until their eyes met and she gestured to her notes and made a shooing motion that Reina was broken out of her little trance, her face slipped off her hand as she blinked, returning to the reality where a classroom setting awaited her. Flustered, she fumbled for her pencil, stealing one more glance at the blonde before intently shifting her focus back to her notebook. How embarrassing... 
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Throughout the rest of the lecture, Reina acutely avoided making eye contact with the mysterious girl. She opted to look literally anywhere else, rarely moving her gaze away from the teacher and her notes. Following that notion, things went quite well, and eventually the class moved on as it normally did. When the informational section was over at long last, the students began to gravitate towards their own little groups as their free working period began. Multitudes of different projects took place under one roof, each with its own unique attributes and visions. Before getting started with her own work, there was something else that needed to be addressed. Reina stood, hesitantly making her way over to the blonde who sat content with coffee in hand. Curiosity killed the cat, and the redhead was ninety percent sure she wouldn't make it out of this alive; should she apologize? Well, there wasn't really anything to be apologizing for. However, she did want to know who exactly the girl was, and what she suddenly appeared in this class only today. But... what was she to say?
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'Have you always been here?' Hmm, no, that would make her look absentminded. 
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'Are you a transfer student? Where did you come from?' Too pushy... 
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'Is it hot in here, or is that just you?' Honestly? Reina couldn't even dream of being that suave(if it could even be seen as so, she wasn't exactly an expert). [break][break]

'What are you doing here?' No, much too impolite.
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'You come here often?' Too casual, not to mention the fact that it was school, and everyone came here often. The silence between them wasn't comfortable, not in the slightest. It felt awkward, and the longer Reina stood there without a word, the worse it would be. Say something, say something! And so, with a deep breath and little thought, she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
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"You don't belong here." Of all the things she could've said, of all the things she wanted to say, that wasn't even in the top one hundred. Nice going, dumbo. Operation introduction had failed miserably, and now it was time to retreat. She couldn't though, that would be rude, wouldn't it? Ah, but at this point, did it even matter? Surely, it would just be adding oil to the fire. C'mon Reina, you can still save this! She scolded herself, mentally facepalming as she tried to come up with something, anything to fix the atmosphere she created. Oh! "Um, I-I mean, your jersey. It looks... a little out of place here, that's all." Reina couldn't tell if she'd made things better or worse, but at the moment, it felt more like the latter. 

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Theora Katou | 545 words | my daughter is a loser nerd

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Theora watched and enjoyed the panicked realization spreading across the girl's face and almost laughed out loud when she fumbled the pencil. Perhaps it was to say, 'yes I noticed' or maybe 'don't worry', Theora winked at the girl when she looked back up. Oh, the emotions of a redhead were truly a joy to behold. Theora wrote that down, hardly poetry but she could probably find some way to make it sound good in a soliloquy. Fire was the obvious metaphor but obvious wasn't bad. She wrote a few lines of how fire couldn't be hidden or how fire could be heard, or it threatened to consume all. In the end, she wasn't excited abut any of her lines. It would require more work.

Her mind locked on her own creativity, she didn't bother giving the redhead any more attention. At least, no more attention than any other girl in the class. As for the lecture, she gave that no thought at all, though perhaps the teacher thought differently. Theora was certainly writing a large amount of notes. But eventually it passed, the class moved on to the more tactile lesson. Here was the reason she had come. She would need lots of notes now, her distinguished eye would be tested. But she couldn't do that while stiff, so Theora stood with the rest of the class.

She set her near empty cup down alongside the notepad and pencil and placed both hands on her hips. She leaned back at the hips and was annoyed when her back didn't pop but that was how it went. She twisted her waste around a few times and stretched her shoulders like she was limbering up for a game. It was quick, probably more than necessary for the relatively short time she'd been sitting, but it felt good and she didn't care. Once she felt limber enough, she sat back down and cracked her knuckles. Far better. At least in her theater classes they weren't confined to such rigid thinking like desks and chairs unless they wanted to be.

She grabbed the cup and drained the last dregs. When she put it down, she found the redhead in front of her. Surprise, surprise. Theora smiled and set the coffee cup down slowly before picking up her pen and notebook. She waited for the girl to speak first. It seemed a long time coming. Theora was well acquainted with the power of the long pause. It could seem like an eternity if it went long enough but she was prepared. After all, she was the Director and obviously this girl wanted to see the wizard who pulled the strings.

Of course she wasn't expecting so brunt an accusation and she raised her eyebrows as the girl readjusted her opening lines. "Well." She began. "I don't belong here. I am observing." She crossed one leg over the other. "I can see you're observing too." She was going for a long shot here. "So you're looking at my jersey, not down it." Theora pulled at the jersey with two fingers. "But this is for pottery, all that messy clay flying around." She let it fall back into place. "Plus it's game day. The Carp are well on their way to the history books."

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or a brief moment, Reina wondered if she'd been imagining things. She could've sworn the enigmatic girl winked at her earlier... half of Reina wanted to believe she was seeing things, blinded by the inexplicable wave of gay thoughts that hit her head on like a truck when she lost herself in that mesmerizing labyrinth of blue. Before, she'd waved it off as her overactive imagination, but now she wasn't all that confident in her own answers. The redhead was observing, but admitting to that would be embarrassing at an almost universal, world-shattering level. She was never one who could weave and bend words into an ornate thread that braided heartstrings into one; she was that of stubborn reticence and clumsy inhibition. And so in the end, stolen glances and fleeting moments became her lifelines. 
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Introspection wouldn't do her any good now though, not with when this bewitching girl stood before Reina, her words casting all kinds of spells that left the redhead's cheeks hot and her lips pressed in a thin line. Just like that, her voice was stolen away. "No, I... wasn't looking there, I swear! I didn't, I wouldn't – do something like... that." She did have to admit though, the jersey had its own little charm in the way it was just a tad bit oversized, and despite her desperate claims only moments before, purple eyes slowly, hesitantly glanced down, then straight back up as if it were some heinous crime. "Anyway," Reina began, digging for any way to change the subject at hand and save face while she still could, "are you observing us for another class, or something of the like?" 
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The jersey was for cleanliness, of course, and suddenly Reina felt like a fool for choosing such a weak scapegoat. Well, that ordeal had more or less passed now, although new ones quickly sprouted in its place. Game day... Carps... sports? Well, well, well. Well, well, weeeellll, well, well. I know absolutely nothing about sports. It seemed as if the grave Reina was digging for herself only grew deeper with each passing moment, and she had to hold herself back from saying that ah yes, her favorite part of baseball was when they run around and hit the ball, or something along those lines.
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Hmm, baseball, baseball... her family often watched games during large get togethers, but all she really retained was an unnecessary amount of shouting and a few broken relationships. Having grown up in Tokyo, there was one team that stood out to her more than the others, that stuck to her memory after constant exposure and right now, Reina was glad for the many flashes of orange and black in her past. "Baseball, hmm?" The redhead mused, trying to sound cooler than she really was in her psuedo-panicked state. "I came from Tokyo, actually. Are you familiar with the Giants? If I were to support anyone, I suppose it would be them." The thought that such a claim might backfire had not crossed her mind, not for a single second.

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Theora Katou | 505 words | l8tr reina u did your best

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Theora was quite enjoying the other girl's discomfort. Some people didn't know how to hold the spotlight it seemed, even if she was an upperclassman, but that was fine. Theora didn't mind working with a more mature woman, they had so much to offer, after all. An older woman could give a production the gravitas that was needed to appeal to the stuffier demographics. Not to mention that their experience could be drawn upon and used when needed. "I suppose you could say that it's for another class, but mostly I like to watch for my own satisfaction." She drew the word out long and slow and she was going to play the role a bit more.

She probably would have said something like I find that enjoyable, don't you or You'd know all about that, wouldn't you. But then the girl ruined it all. The Giants, disgusting. She said it out loud. "The Giants?" No game now, she was up on her feet. She was standing at full height above the redhead. Then nose to nose with the redheaded girl. "Those no good backyard hooligans are the worst. They've got nothing on my Carp and they're going to taste defeat tonight." Her face was flushed with the sudden passions that she usually tried to keep hidden. But they always emerged when it came to the only things worth caring about, theater and baseball.

Theora did try to keep her voice down, they were in a classroom, but apart from that, she was unrestrained. "Anybody can throw money out into the world and buy talent when it comes around. The Carp nurture and turn good players into legends that even god would applaud for." She stared directly into the eyes of the redhead. Theora was in so close that she could feel the heat of the other girl's face against her own. Noses touching, foreheads centimeters apart, Theora's breath was hot and smelled of her bitter coffee.

She wanted to grab the girl by her collar and shake her until she saw the truth. You did not casually support a team like the Giants. They were evil and they tainted all they touched. Tonight there would be a reckoning and the Carp would purify them in the fires of a humiliating defeat. It had to end that way, it was the Carp's year. They'd win it all but they had to destroy the Giants tonight.

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atching for her own satisfaction? The way the phrase was delivered harbored phantom implications that Reina couldn't quite put her finger on. What was that supposed to mean? Confusion was written all over her face, big and bold and just a little bit lost as she nodded, slow and skeptical. She felt as if she were missing a very important piece to this puzzle, the one that would reveal the big picture of it all. "Well then, I hope you're satisfied with what you see." Her wording might not have been the best and the sentence itself could be easily misconstrued, but Reina genuinely did mean the class.
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And then, everything changed with one little claim. Or, perhaps it could be considered a giant claim. The girl stood abruptly, and it seemed as if her whole demeanor had changed in an instant. Oh my, she didn't look that tall when she was sitting down. Her words were laced with venom as she spat fire at the Giants, but all Reina could really focus on was the quickly closing distance between them. The cool and composed blonde from before dissipated in an instant and now, the redhead felt as if she were staring into the sun – and not in a good way. 
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God damn, it was way too early in the morning for this.
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Reina froze, cheeks red and eyes wide, her senses bombarded by the heat radiating from the other girl's face and the bitter smell that came from her breath that was now much too close for comfort. Was second-hand caffeine a thing? She hoped it was, because honestly, she didn't see any other way to live through this. Reina now stood nose to nose with the beautiful girl she'd been staring at, only said girl was absolutely furious and the redhead had absolutely no idea why. It was just baseball, wasn't it? What was she getting so worked up about? Regaining what little she could of her composure, Reina took a hesitant step back as she muttered, "D-Don't you think you're overreacting a little?" 
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If the Giants were that awful, wouldn't people have stopped cheering for them long ago? Reina wasn't exactly a baseball expert, but surely, no team could be downright evil. "You talk about them like they're the scum of the earth or something... I'm sure they're not that bad." Okay, maybe it wasn't in her best interest to defend a team of a sport she knew little to nothing about, but still, did this girl really hate them that much? "It just, well, it seems a little excessive if you ask me."

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Theora Katou | 432 words | sorry for lateeeee ;;o;;

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"Overreacting?" Theora started, "Of course not, overacting perhaps which is my right as Director, but never overreacting. Such things are for people who are not in complete control which I am. The Giants achievements have an asterisk beside them and that footnote should say that they bought all the talent and paid their way to victory. A contemptible technique if there ever was one. At least cheaters put effort into hiding the sin stained fingers. The Giants managers wear their sin like some sort of badge of honor." Theora shook her head. "And worst of all, the fans don't care, they love their precious team that buys victory so long as victories keep coming."

She leaned back slightly and folded her arms across her chest with a bit of a huff. Her little rant was finally over and done with. "If the Giants started losing, they'd lose pretty much all their so called devoted fans." Maybe she wasn't quite done nor was she in as much control of herself as she liked to think, but come on, who liked the Giants? Even if you did grow up or come from Tokyo, surely you could do better than the Giants. Even a company team wouldn't be as sell out-y as the Giants.

"They're mostly scummy." she pouted and looked off into the corner of the room. "You didn't know about them and you're from Tokyo, that's how interesting they are. My Carp are basically a national treasure." Her gaze flitted between the redhead and the corner of the room and her voice went even quieter. "It's a perfectly reasonable reaction to finding out somebody is a fan of something like the Giants." She was mumbling, some might say babbling, under her breath now and mostly to herself. "Ought to set them straight. No call for waving a Giants banner when the Carps exist."

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he girl was quick to reply, and Reina decided that maybe telling her she overreacted wasn't the best way to go about things. She wasn't quite sure what exactly the meaning was behind the title 'Director', or the claim of being in complete control, but she wasn't about to ask in the middle of the blonde's baseball rant, eighty percent of which proceeded to blow right over Reina's head. All she knew about the sport was the fact that they hit balls and ran around a dirt diamond; did money really have that much of an impact on the game and its players? Or perhaps she was speaking of some kind of underground conspiracy... paying the other team to lose? Reina had to admit, she was a little lost, but mentioning that to her angry companion would probably do more harm than good. Just roll with it...
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Eventually the Director's barrage eased and her immediate rage subsided, and when she leaned back, Reina finally felt as thought she could breathe again. Okay, yeah, she was furious, her rant was very passionate and heart-felt, but the redhead also noted the fact that she smelled pretty nice despite the overbearing intimidation that had Reina shrinking before her. She wasn't done yet, though the insults that escaped through coffee scented words were more softer and – wait, was she pouting? The nameless girl continued to throw out surprises, and honestly, the redhead was much more fond of this as opposed to the big scary rant from before. It was a lot cuter to say the least.
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Oh geez, Reina wasn't even quite sure how to respond. That was a lot, and it felt as if she were currently standing on very thin ice. She wasn't a die-hard fan of the Giants, barely a fan at all in fact, but it felt wrong to just give in. Lightly rocking on the balls of her feet, she cleared her throat, offering a slight smile. "W-Well, even if they do pay... a little bit more than what's necessary, I'm sure the team's players still do their best on the field. I mean, you can't pay the other team to lose, right? So there must be some genuine talent involved." Her voice trailed off, tentatively gazing up at the other. After a few moments passed, she continued. "Your Carps. I, uh, don't know much about them. Maybe you could... tell me about them some time?" The 'Director' was mumbling something under her breath, incoherent save for the few words Reina could catch; something about Carps and Giants, a spiel the redhead could probably guess.
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Perhaps a change of topic would appease the pouty girl before her. Reina sighed ever so softly, already tired despite the fact that the day had only just begun. "Also, you said you were a director?" She asked, realizing that all she could really refer to the blonde as was Carp Girl. A director... or was it the director?

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Theora Katou | 453 words | xxx

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"Ugh." Theora rolled her eyes and made a disgusted noise. "Nobody is saying their players aren't trying." she added "Usually." under her breath. "The trouble is they're always winning so they're always making more money so they're always offering huge bonuses to the best players to draw them in so they keep winning and making more money. Then, if somebody from another team shows any kind of emerging talent, suddenly BAM." She punched her hand, making a loud slapping sound. "Trade offers come pouring in from the Giants. Booze, girls, money, glamour, all the good stuff. And sometimes, once they have him, they'll bench him and almost never bring him out. They just want the competition gone. Dirty." Theora shook her head.

But her face lit up when she was asked about the Carp. "Oh the Carp, the Carp. What I couldn't tell you about my Carp is not worth knowing. Batting averages, championships, legendary heroes of the diamond, oh there are so many avenues we could travel with me as your guide, I could unlock new doors." She smirked and leaned in close. "I could teach you things you've never even imagined." She whispered then she leaned back and spoke like a normal person. "Perhaps at a cafe later, but right now, you should be doing school things. Whatever those are. And I shall watch."

Theora was getting back on her game as she forced the game of baseball out of her mind. This was easier said than done but she had to be mature about this. The Director was not easily swayed, the Director was absolute. "I am the Director. Mistress of the theater."  You could almost hear the capital D in Director and the italics in theater.  She'd practiced for a very long time into a tape recorder to do that and she very rarely missed an opportunity to abuse the skill. 

"I am the mistress of my domain, scores of people flutter and dash about and I stand in the back and direct them all so that everyone who leaves us is satisfied."  She seemed to stand taller as she spoke, her back straightened and her shoulders went back.  Oh how she loved to stroke her own ego.  "Which is why I am here and why you should get to work, Matches."  It was probably too early to stroke her hair.  She hadn't won the girl over, seduced her into the arts yet.  But nothing ventured, nothing gained and who wouldn't want a redhead in their troupe?  Theora reached out and tucked some hair back behind the girl's ear.  "Impress me and perhaps I can invite you to join my cavalcade of pleasure.  The theater loves watching a virgin perform for the first time."

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ell... it looked as if finding some sort of middle ground wasn't going to work either. Her words had been misinterpreted, and it only seemed to send the blonde on another short rant, passion flowing through the speech that Reina struggled to follow. Wins, money, bonuses, bribes? More money – Reina jumped at the sudden slapping sound, blinking a few times as she stared at what could only be described as the Queen of Baseball, radiant in her fervor and glory. Honestly? Maybe defending the Giants wasn't worth the backlash of baseball information that she didn't completely understand. Maybe it would be better to just... smile and nod, smile and nod. Whatever beef this girl had against the Giants wasn't something that would subside any time soon, after all. It isn't like I'll be actively watching baseball anyway...[break][break]

Her attitude swung around in a one-eighty the moment the Carps were mentioned, though, and as intimidatingly attractive and borderline terrifying as the blonde was, Reina couldn't help but find her devotion and excitement towards the Carps to be pretty cute. A gentle smile fell onto her lips as she listened to the other talk about her vast knowledge of a thousand Carp-related topics, although that smile began to dissipate as her personal bubble was popped once again, the familiar scent of coffee and cute girl invaded her senses. "I could teach you things you've never even imagined." Heat rose to her cheeks like wildfire, and Reina silently prayed that her blush wasn't too noticeable. This... this was in the context of baseball, right? There were no other implications there? The moment had come and left before she could question it though, the blonde speaking normally again without missing a beat, as if she didn't suggest... Reina halted her own thoughts. Suggest what? Something only a matter of seconds ago. "R-Right, school. Yeah, that's... important, mhmm." Did she sound nervous? She definitely wasn't nervous. Totally. [break][break]

Mistress of the Theater? "Does the Director have a name?" Or was she supposed to refer to her as so? Maybe that was part of the whole mysterious, enigmatic air to it all. Well, she fit the roll quite fell, from what Reina had seen. She spoke like someone with lots of power, and honestly, she didn't doubt that. The Director, puppet master of the show; it sounded cool in theory, but in reality, it was much more daunting. "Work," She repeated, the meaning of the word lost for a brief moment, her mind more so dwelling on the little nickname that caught her attention. "Oh, of course, that's a good idea." Run away, retreat! Reina's mind screamed, her face flustered from the embarrassment that came with being so weak and easily swayed. It annoyed her that her strings were probably being pulled, too, but as the Director reached out, Reina found herself unable to move. The contact was brief, fleeting, and violet eyes opened wide at the insinuations weaved into the blonde's next statement. Cavalcade of pleasure? V-Virgin performance? What did that mean? Was she expected to – t-to... No, they'd never allow that at school, not in a million years! What kind of theater was she responsible for? "I'm not... I mean, I-I don't..." She was lost for words, her mouth dry and her brain in shambles. "I should... be going now, maybe."

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Theora Katou | 552 words | this is so late im so ashamed c'; pls forgive me

TEMPLATE BY ANNECORDELIA OF ADOXOGRAPHY | ll3amD

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Well maybe the girl wasn't such a fan of baseball. So what, that just meant more fun sharing a glorious new obsession and seeing somebody else fall in love with the greatest team on the planet. After all, falling in love with baseball and falling in love with the Carp were pretty much synonymous and who wouldn't fall in love with baseball given enough tender guidance. Theora liked giving guidance. Guiding, instructing, ordering, demanding, it was all the same and all part of her charm and talent. Mostly the charm, she was probably even more charming than the Carp's mascot, Slyly, though not as cute as the team dog Micky.

The girl seemed to react less to baseball and more to the small bits of flirting and teasing. Well, Theora considered them small. Bold, daring, but hardly much of anything. Not the sort of thing you'd see in theater unless you were doing a particularly carefully lit scene at the forefront of the stage so the audience could catch every detail. Well, if this was what held Matches' attention, then Theora was happy to provide. But not in too much supply, that could douse the fire and Theora didn't have the gasoline in place. She stared straight into Matches' eyes, she would look so beautiful paired up with the right girl, cheek to cheek, heart to heart, lips to lips. Who it might be would stay a mystery for now but hopefully not for long.

Theora, kept her eyes on Matches but as she spoke, she leaned in again. "Does the Director need a name?" Behind her eyes was a raging inferno of intense energy. "Standing on high, guiding, teaching, Director seems just so very proper. If you must call me, be it in unrelenting ecstacy or unbridled need, you might call me Theora." She pulled back, all professional again. "But for now, you may call me Director or by my family name, Katou."

It was probably mean to yoyo her around like this, but it certainly seemed to keep the girl off balance and that was amusing in and of itself. But they both had a point, admittedly it was a point mostly highlighted by Theora but schoolwork ought to get done. She did hope Matches had the talent that she was looking for, it'd be fun to keep her around. "Do your best, Matches. Perhaps after class, if we're both still interested, we can share a coffee and discuss if you might be perfect for a position..." she paused and if she still had coffee she might have taken a sip and licked her lips to play it up even more but alas "...beneath me. Oh livuwaru." she said with a wave, horrifically butchering the words Au revoir.

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heora, no, the Director gazed into her eyes, hues of blue striking and solemn, staring so intently that Reina wondered if there was something there, or if she was seeing into her very soul. And then she was close again, and for a second Reina saw a bit of a spark in her eyes that were so unwavering and intense, so thoughtful and so daunting. 'The Director' sounded more like a Queen, running her little kingdom whilst perched on a throne of gold. Or perhaps iron? [break][break]

Unrelenting ecstasy... unbridled need... Reina quietly scratched the name 'Theora' from her mind, the mortification of those descriptions leaving fire in its wake, scorching her cheeks as she broke eye contact, looking anywhere but at the girl in front of her. Katou-san, yes, definitely, that's without doubt what Reina would be calling her from now on. Maybe she shouldn't have even asked for a name in the first place, the Director would've been just fine too; if curiosity killed the cat, then boy was this cat well on her way. Within a moment, the Director returned to her competent, polished demeanor, and Reina was left wondering, once again, if she was really speaking to the same person. She much preferred the professional side of the Director, it was much easier on her heart. Reina nodded, scrunching her nose a bit as she hesitantly glanced back at the taller girl. "Okay... Katou-san."
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"Do your best, Matches." "You too," She blurted out almost instantly. It was only after the words left her mouth that she realized, well, what exactly was she wishing her best for? Do your best sitting on the side over there? "I mean, y'know, do your best with, uh, whatever your theater duties entail." Watching girls? Watching her? Ughhhh, Reina was nervous already. Then came a possible invitation for coffee, a position? What – oh... again, the implications left her with a fearful curiosity of what the Director's so-called 'theater' was like. Reina didn't have much experience with theater, none at all, really, and with the words ushered to her, she couldn't help but think—[break][break]

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... 'Livuwaru'?[break][break]

Reina repeated the phrase in her mind once, then a second time, and a third for good measure. It sounded familiar yet completely foreign at the same time, pronounced in a way that the redhead had a difficult time figuring out what language it was even supposed to be, until finally, it clicked. Au revoir... was she trying to speak french? Emphasis on trying. Reina suppressed a giggle, a genuine smile tugging at her lips. So the Director wasn't an all-powerful, incredibly smooth, untouchable Goddess after all. It was cute. "Coffee might be nice." She replied, a bit more confidence in her voice after experiencing that little falter. The Director seemed like someone who wouldn't want to be corrected, but hey, Reina couldn't allow herself to be one-upped all the time, right? With an innocent grin, she bid her farewell. "Au revoir, Theora-chan." [break][break]

With that, she turned to walk back to her seat. Or, more accurately, a bit of a speed walk bordering on a run, but hey, no need for specifics. What mattered was that that whole ordeal was a thing of the past now, and she had a project to start working on. There was still quite a bit of time left in class, and she wouldn't have to face the Director again until then. With a deep sigh, Reina took one final glance at the girl with the sun in her hair and the sky in her eyes, lingering for a few moments before abruptly turning her attention back to the task at hand. This was an art class. She needed to focus on art, and only art. All you have to do is ignore the mistress behind the curtain.

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Theora Katou | 627 words | this one ended up longer than intended oop

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God Matches was cute, The pairing would have to be with a real firebrand, some girl with a lot of energy who could draw up the redhead's emotions right out to the surface. Theora had heard that redheads could be passionate but this girl let her emotions shine like a beacon on her face. Shining loud and strong, it was a grand thing, should this girl ever get to the stage, she could be a glorious actress. Emoting to an entire packed theater could be difficult but this girl had the knack, though possibly not for faking them. Maybe they could experiment later but Theora wasn't recruiting actresses right now...well no, she was always doing that. But her focus was supposed to be on prop girls. Something more than a simple prop to occupy her time.

Then she went and said you too. Oh, that was cute. And the embarassment was palpable. It made Theora's heart jump. What a wonderful face, her Matches had. She couldn't contain it any more. She smiled the full Cheshire cat grin showing a few too many coffee tinted teeth. She had been told her smile was not her best feature in the past, too wide, too predatory, it made people nervous. As far as she was concerned, they just weren't used to seeing her smile and maybe if they ever did anything worth praising they'd see it enough to love it.

Then Matches laughed. That wasn't part of her script. She was supposed to blush again, turn away suddenly, react like a lovestruck teenager. What was this laughing? Did she not know french? Was it too much after all? She'd read it in several plays, maybe she'd gone too far outside of Japan. Her eye twitched. She was losing control of the situation, that wasn't good, she didn't like that. Maybe she had imagined it, had she imagined it? Matches accepted her invitation to coffee, sort of. She didn't deny it. But then she said it. It didn't even have much of an accent,. Oh she had bungled that one up good. Her eye twitched again and her smile faltered as her brain ran through a long series of one particular curse over and over again. She was furious with herself. She should have found it online, practiced it all morning and afternoon until she sounded natural with it. Like Director. This is what happened when you went to war with prototypes.

She sat in her chair as Matches walked off and Theora picked up her notebook with one hand and her pencil with the other fist. She wrote au revoir down and then proceeded to draw little arrows in it and scratch it out over and over again. What a miserable pair of words they were. She wanted them gone forever. She'd looked like a fool. It was disgusting. Probably she wouldn't even get any prop girl now, let alone Matches who would probably laugh at her all day. Disgusting.

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hat smile was... unique, memorable in the sense that Reina had never seen anything like it before. Perhaps on the television or in a movie, but definitely not face to face. It was so different to the smirks that decorated the Director's face before, so wide and full and peculiar that the redhead wondered if it was genuine, if this was the way Theora – no, Katou-san – smiled when she wasn't making a passionate statement or a teasing remark. It was endearing in a weird sort of way that Reina couldn't quite put her finger on. Well, to be completely honest, it was a bit creepy too, but mostly endearing. Mostly.
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She seemed... annoyed, and Reina wondered if she maybe shouldn't have corrected the blonde, instead leaving her content with that mess of sounds that was to be assumed French. Well, she wasn't exactly fluent herself, but previous endeavors during certain phases that shall not be named left her with more experience in foreign languages than she knew what to do with. Spells and incantations were often not written in Japanese, and as much as Reina despised her wretched chuunibyou, perhaps that was the one positive thing to come out of it all. The last thing she saw was the Director furiously scratching something down in her notebook, and Reina smiled to herself before indulging in what she should've to begin with.
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Three-dimensional art was never her forte, but it felt empowering to be able to create something with your own two hands, to sculpt and mold without the worry of not being able to undo your mistakes; clay was adaptable and very forgiving, and for that, Reina was thankful. There was more room for correction and thus, more room for perfection. Her talents lied more so in two-dimensional art, in the wielding of color and aesthetic, though she couldn't deny the fun that came with sculpting; she wouldn't consider herself awful at it, either. She much preferred hand-sculpting to the pottery wheel – it allowed for more detail, more control over the outcome at hand and further room for the imagination to leave its mark. That, and Reina wasn't the strongest person in the world, the opposite, really, and the last time she'd tried her hand at the wheel was rather embarrassing.
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Once Reina lost herself in the arts, time passed by quickly without her notice. Before she knew it, class was coming to a close, and there was yet another obstacle waiting for her. Cleanup took a decent chunk of time, and as Reina rinsed the remnants of clay off her hands, she thought of what she should say to the Director once they came face to face once more. Was she upset about the au revoir incident? Should Reina apologize? Maybe she didn't want to get coffee after that. She sighed, taking her sweet old time to delay the inevitable as long as she could. It wasn't long before the bell rang and the classroom became a mess of shuffling students and chattering voices, and with a deep breath, Reina gravitated towards the blonde and her little notebook full of secrets. Honestly, she still didn't know what to say. "Um... hey." The redhead muttered a bit awkwardly, playing with her hands behind her back as she kept her gaze away from icy blue. "Did you still want to grab that coffee?" It only now hit her that the Director just had coffee, literally like, an hour ago. "Well, if you don't want to that's fine too. Or if I..." Reina's voice trailed off, soon amounting to naught but a whisper as she finished, "offended you, or something."

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Theora Katou | 610 words | I have issues, idk how these keep ending up so long its unintentional I swear

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Theora pouted awhile longer before she felt well enough to actually go about doing the job that she had come here to do. Not that she wasn't still upset, but she had swallowed it down and transferred the emotion to th notebook now. It would be there when she wanted to come back to it, relive it, draw from the well of shame to bring forth raw emotion into a script or performance. It was gone, no longer something to be felt but something to be used. Theora breathed out a slow sigh of, well, not relief, it was closer to the exhale of meditation, letting all the emotion flow through you and out, leaving nothing but a clear purpose. And her purpose was recruiting girls.

It seemed that most of them had gotten their current projects out and started working, well she would give them some more time for that. Better to intrude in the middle of things, not to throw them off their game but to see how they handled interference and if they managed to retain a sense of professionalism, after all, they were the experts and she was the newcomer, relatively. They should at least be able to explain their decisions and their project in detail upon request. Theora wouldn't mind the experimenters, she, too, liked to experiment. Making it up as you went along was basically improv which Theora loved. But people who were secretive, who would not tell what they were doing, she did not want them. Self sufficiency was a good trait for a person to have, but Theora wanted people who shared and would welcome her into the fold.

To buy some extra time, she went and had a chat with the teacher. On pottery as a tool in theater, the significance of the symbology in clay, and other mildly interesting things. Then she began her rounds. She checked with almost everyone, taking notes, making connections, though she avoided Matches. She wasn't going to make a fool of herself again so soon. She had enough shame tucked away in her notebook, thank you very much. But eventually, the class was ending. It was time to go and do some processing and decompressing before she had to go to her own class. She walked back to her little corner and began putting away her notebook into her school bag when the approaching footsteps drew her attention.

It was Matches. Theora had to decide what to do and quickly. She could ignore the redhead, a good idea if she was about to get mocked. She could turn the tables, do something to shift the embarrassment back. Matches seemed easily flustered and perhaps a little sudden pda after their talk from earlier could get some looks. Theora herself didn't mind being looked at, that was part of the charm of theater, the attention she got. But no, Matches wasn't coming to make fun of her. She didn't seem to be thinking about that at all. "Coffee?" Theora's train had to shift gears. Oh right, she'd invited Matches on an audition. It wasn't a date, obviously. "Yes, coffee. Well I had expected to invite you for coffee later this evening and then back to my place for more personalized instruction." She said matter of factly, she was referring to baseball, not even trying to make a pass. "I've got class in block 3 though so if you did want to share a coffee with me it'd have to be now and in the cafeteria. Haven't got the time to go into the city." Which was a shame since the school coffee was hardly any better than her own instant stuff. "So if that's fine with you, then it's good for me too."

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hold me tight

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and I'll turn to gold in the sunlight

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t appeared as if 'coffee' took a few moments to register in the Director's mind, and and Reina wondered if she should've opened with something else, like for instance, an actual greeting. Was that too straight to the point? She considered showing up with a grand 'Bonne journée, mademoiselle!' or mayhaps a 'Voir quelque chose d'intéressant?' but decided against it because not only did she want Katou-san to like her at least a little bit, but the sparkly, suave version of herself that sashayed around in her mind would definitely not come out should she try to actually voice her thoughts.[break][break]

It was for the best, and it seemed as if the Director caught up rather quickly with a scenario that had Reina second guessing her life choices – late evening coffee and a night in someone else's room? The redhead's mind immediately raced back to their entire conversation, sifting out certain alarming phrases that stood out among them in a certain context that left her hand less than discreetly covering her blushing face. 'Unrelenting ecstasy', 'unbridled need', 'a position beneath me', each one added more heat to her cheeks that threatened to melt off as she mentally swatted away the thoughts that threatened to Kill. [break][break]

Dear God, was she eternally thankful for Katou-san's other class. Whatever it may be, it was now officially Reina's favorite. [break][break]

"D-Dang, that's too bad..." The redhead replied, her voice a bit shaky despite her many efforts to sound composed and disappointed. "I suppose now will have to do then." Reina stated with likely one nod too many. "It's completely fine with me... shall we go, then?" Anything to escape the immediate embarrassment that loomed over her as she found herself at a loss in deciphering the blonde's words. [break][break]

Yeah, Reina would really be needing that coffee.

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Theora Katou | 302 words | 《《o(≧◇≦)o》》 that was a fun thread

TEMPLATE BY ANNECORDELIA OF ADOXOGRAPHY | ll3amD