Straight-Stitch Style [Valerie/Komachi]

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

"Hakase-san! Substitute for a similar shade! Fukuoka-san, no, something else!"

Backstage, in the workshop set aside for the costume department, Komachi's voice echoed. She was not wont for the leadership roles. Though she knew what her career would entail, what her position in the family entailed, and the general nature of a proffessional environment, she preferred an environment where the heirarchy was rather flat. So when it came down to being a leader, she fell back on the only style she knew: the one practiced by her best friend Yuki.

"Tokiwa-san, good work, go help Hakase-san! Takahara-san, just do it!"

Short, decisive orders. No frills, no sugar coating, rapid-fire, forceful. Perhaps not the kindest method, but so far, it seemed to be working. With her senpai needed elsewhere, there was a general sense of confusion as the power vaccuum took hold until Komachi decided to usurp the role. Perhaps the girls afterward would be fearful of this side of Komachi. But for now, Komachi simply focused on what needed to be done. There was, unfortunately, one drawback to this style of leadership.

"Hakase-san, thank you, now go he-"

Komachi stuttered, hunger pangs kicking interrupted. She panted, as if in shock from a powerful blow to her abdomen. She hadn't eaten since lunch, and even then, it wasn't much at all. The tailor grit her teeth to power through the increasing headache she was feeling. Silently, she heaped praises on her best friend. How could she keep this up without going ma- Well...perhaps that was Yuki's sceret. She was always mad.

"Hakase-san, go help Fukuoka-san now. Everyone! Good work! We're almost done!"

For a few more minutes, the platoon of girls buzzed about in the workshop. Even Komachi, despite having to direct the other girls and with a near-blinding headache, still continued to stitch together the outfit she was assigned. Soon after, they had all finished the outfits they needed and started to clean up the workshop. Komachi worked slowly, though none of her classmates blamed her for her crippled pace. But with many hands, the cleanup work was done at a rapid pace, and with Komachi as the de facto leader, she was left in charge with locking up.

It was late afternoon when the tailor stepped out of the workshop. She locked the door behind her, then turned around to lean back against it, growling. Slowly, she slid down to the floor, sitting and muttering in awe as she looked down at the floor, exhausted and hungry.

"Seriously, Yuki-chan...what insanse strength...."

Footsteps soon approached, but Komachi for the moment had little energy to look at who it was.

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

There was an odd dissidence between how Komachi acted as a friend, and how she acted while in charge. Not that there certainly wasn't a difference based on roles with Valerie - that much was evident when seeing Valerie at her part-time job. Overall, Valerie couldn't complain.

Unlike Komachi, Valerie was still by and large tied closely to her sempais, but she was gradually getting more and more responsibility. Right now, her job was making sure that everyone had the materials they needed, and making sure more was made available, if feasible. Valerie had been making her way from department to department.

While Valarie had already addressed the needs of the costuming department, she was still zipping around, keeping a steady, but quick pace, when Komachi caught her eye, seeing, and even hearing signs that Komachi was in pain. Valerie didn't want to undermine her in front of her subordinates though, so she merely kept her eye on her... and least, until the others were gone.

The rapid footsteps Komachi heard were, of course, Valerie, who only now felt she had the opportunity to attend to Komachi, "Ikezawa-san, are you alright?" Komachi asked, a calm, but concerned tone in her voice, "It seemed like you were in pain."

215 | @komachi | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

A familiar voice reached Komachi's ears and the tailor looked up from where she sat to the green-haired girl who approached.

"Ah, Belrose-san. Heh...I'm glad to see you. Seriously, I really, really am...urgh..." Komachi said, straining as she tried to get to her feet. Her voice was starting to get slightly hoarse. "I'll...I'll be okay. Just need some food and some re...rest..." As soon as she stood, Komachi wobbled, suddenly hit by a spell of dizziness. She grit her teeth and panted slightly as she forced her body back into equilibrium, but it was clear that it was impossible to hide her fatigue.

"What the...Yuki-chan...Miharu-chan...argh...they really are demons..." Komachi muttered as she put a hand over her chest. With a soft chuckle, she looked over to Valerie. "Okay...I'm not feeling to well, but above all else, I think my pride has been the most damaged. You've probably been hearing me shout from several departments over, haven't you?" With a quick look from side to side, Komachi found that there was no one else in sight, followed by a much more honest growl of her stomach. Without any shame or embarrassment, she looked back to Valerie with a tired but relaxed smile, stumbling a bit closer. "Hey...want to get dinner together? If you're free of course."

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

Valerie was definitely getting worried.She approached a bit closer, and extended her hand to the girl, "Ikezawa-san, I admit you do have me a bit worried." she told her, with a tone of almost motherly concern. She continued to listen to the heiress, but she had a feeling the issue might be more chronic. Missing out on a bit of sleep or skipping lunch had negative repercussions, but usually it only proved to be a distraction. Even if you'd missed enough sleep to nod off, it wasn't like this. It was clear to Valerie that Komachi's problem was more severe.

She smiled at the invitation that followed. It was a nice gesture, but she was concerned about Komachi leaving campus, even accompanied. If her friend's condition worsened in public, it could lead to a loss of face, to say nothing about having to then get treatment for her in a still relatively unfamiliar city.

"That would be nice. Perhaps I could cook for you, however." Valerie told her. She was a good enough cook from the practice she had, even though she wasn't exactly on par with a culinary student either. It would be a good way to keep an eye on her, to make sure that her condition didn't worsen, "I should have the ingredients already. I'm not sure whether you've had a baked potato before though."

It was, of course, an American dish. Hopefully, she'd be interested in trying 'ethnic food'. Which felt a bit odd for her to think of it in those terms, but she imagined such a dish would come across as a bit foreign.

280 | @komachi | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

Komachi grinned her usual mischivious grin as she looked at Valerie's hand. That Valerie worried about her, making that sort of expression was rather surprising. Of course Yuki and the rest of the Investigation Club back in Tokyo worried about her, but this felt different. Despite being a little more than an inconvience, Komachi's condition was largely over exhaustion from the past few days. Were it her friends from Tokyo, they would, in their usual devil-may-care way, would have tried have carried Komachi home, not simply try to offer her a hand the way Valerie was doing now.

Gathering up a little bit of adrenaline, Komachi took Valerie's hand and stood up. Back on both feet, the tailor rotated her shoulders before wincing and coughing slightly as that burst of strength faded. Komachi held her neck breifly out of reflex, feeling how sore it was before shaking her head and trying to put on the appearance of just being tired.

"Well, original plan, was thinking of passing by the cafeteria or some other cafe nearby, yeah, Misha did talk about that one, and either sit down, but it'll be super crowded won't it, or just...huh..." What little filter Komachi had was effectively gone and was speaking purely from her stream of consciousness. She shook her head and took a deep breath, and it was enough to return some sense of lucidity. "But if you're going to offer to cook for the two of us, geez, it'd be rude of me to turn it down, won't it. Alright...if you don't mind me mooching off you this time, I'll be happy to try some of your cooking, Belrose-san."

The tailor gave Valerie a tired smile before trying to walk down the hallway before remembering that the exit to the dorms was the other way.

"Baked potato, huh... I think I've heard of it, but never really had one before," Komachi said, swaying a little as she walked. "This should be interesting. Some of my friends have done potato dishes before, but it was more some kind of stew thing."

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

Komachi's reaction only furthered worried Valerie, as the heiress winced and coughed, with Valerie just cringing slightly in response. Her hand moved very slightly back towards the other girl, as Valerie momentarily considered offering back her hand to her friend. If she didn't know better, she'd have guessed that Komachi was ill. The fact Komachi seemed to be blathering implied her condition was exhausting to body and mind alike.

Valerie's shoulders lowered slightly in relief, as Komachi accepted her offer. She smiled a bit back, "Excellent. It'll be a bit of an early dinner, but that will give you what's left of the day to relax a bit." She paused a moment, realizing that Komachi was probably a bit of a workaholic to get into this kind of shape. "After all, you can't well expect to do your best work when you're this tired."

There, she phrased it in a way she thought Komachi would find logical.

As she left the backstage with Komachi, she turned to go towards the dorms, though she quickly swerved around, noticing Komachi was going the wrong way. "Dear Lord, after dinner, she needs to go straight to bed. Or at least take a good nap."  she thought. Part of her was afraid she'd fall asleep before she even got her dinner.

Thankfully, Komachi saw she was going the wrong way, and turned back. She nodded, "Indeed."

---

It took a bit of walking, but they finally reached the dorm kitchen, with Valerie looking to go retrieve her ingredients. Before she stepped of to get them, she looked at Komachi, "The traditional baked potato has butter, sour cream, cheese, and bacon on it. Since it's the full meal, I'm also planning on adding chicken to it. Is that alright with you, or do you want one of the ingredients removed?" It obviously wasn't a calorie-light dish, but it certainly had a lot of calcium in it.

328 | @tagged | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

Relaxing. That was a good idea. Work got done, so it was time to unwind, and Komachi's growling stomach agreed. Without the stress of preparing for the production and with Valerie's presence, Komachi seemed to regain some of her lucidity. Or perhaps it was the prospect of food, but nonetheless Komachi was able to follow Valerie to the dorms and into the dorm's kitchen.

Komachi was no stranger to the kitchen and could more than take care of herself, and a little bit of guilt hit again as she sat down on a nearby chair. Well, more like threw herself into the chair, which only served to hurt her shoulder. With an frustrated growl, Komachi clutched her shoulder to bear with the pain, but the sensation was gone immediately as Valerie spoke up.

"I'm okay with whatever you cook up, Belrose-san," the tailor said, relaxing and leaning back in the chair. "I'm sure whatever it is, it'll be good. If you need me to help out...just say so. Really, don't just let me leech off you, you know? I mean...maybe not handling a knife would be a good idea, I know I'm not running on all cylinders but still..."

A burst of energy propelled Komachi out of her seat, and for a few moments, she stood upright as much as she could, her usual mischiveous grin on her face again. But soon enough, she started to sway and wobble. Komachi shook her head to try and focus herself once more.

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

Valerie cringed slightly, as her friend showed pain while merely falling into her chair. Rather than immediately turn her attention, Valerie took a couple steps closer to the heiress with a look of concern on her face. This seemed to be more than just simple exhaustion. As her friend swayed and wobbled, her concern only grew. Had she been able to serve her meal to her in bed, she'd have preferred to do so, though Valerie suspected that poor Komachi would fall asleep moments after leaving her room, "Ikezawa-san, are you sure you're just tired and hungry?" she asked, her tone having the cadence of a concerned mother, bending down towards her just slightly, out of habit "You can barely stand, and you seem to be in pain." Needless to say, Komachi actually managing to help prepare the food was right out of the question.She wouldn't trust her around a boiling pot, let alone a knife right now.

Realizing that she was probably infringing on her friend's personal space, she took a few steps back, her concern only grew, clasping her hands together as she wondered whether she should call for the school nurse, or even outright call a doctor.

209 | @komachi | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

"Hm? Yeah, my shoulder hurts a bit, was running around and carrying a lot of stuff," Komachi said, putting on her tough-girl grin and trying to rotate her shoulder to ease the pain. "It'll be fine in the morning, I'm sure. And if not...well..." The tailor had a blank smile on her face and her mouth open. She wanted to say 'I've had worse' but...that wasn't true. It was Yuki and Miharu and Ageha who tended to get hurt more on their adventures, while Komachi was just...there, supporting them and just following along. And with that realization, Komachi seemed to calm down, albeit with a frown.

"I'll...I'll be okay, Belrose-san." Komachi finally said. Her voice clearly held onto its deflated and defeated tone as she carefullly sat back down. She looked up to Valerie and saw the face and pose that her friend of was in and shook her head. It felt like a complete 180 compared to what she was used to seeing during rehearsals, and a pang of guilt shot through the tailor as she realized that the she was the cause for Valerie's worries.

"I'm sorry, Belrose-san, if I worried you," Komachi quietly said. Though she chuckled softly, she had a worried smile on her face. "Like I said, probably the most damage I've taken today is to my pride. I think I overexerted myself a bit, but...I'll heal up by morning. Please...no need to make such a face."

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

Valerie was a tad suspicious of that statement, that just carrying a lot of things. It almost sounded like Komachi needed a chiropractor. Komachi was certain a tough girl, a wild rose, but discretion was the better part of valor. A little voice in Valerie's head reminded her that Komachi was not her little sister, otherwise, Valerie would have pressed the issue just a little bit further.

Despite her own worry, Valerie put on a small smile when she saw that Komachi was concerned about her. Granted, it was partly to ease her concern - the heiress had enough pain on her plate; there was no reason she should have emotional pain. Valerie was also a bit touched though. Val nodded, "Alright. Just be more careful in the future, we wouldn't want this to happen again."

In a bit of a good mood, despite her concern, she spun around towards the stove, as she began prepping the ingredients. She started by carefully chopping some potatoes, "Aside from this though, how have you been doing lately, Ikezawa-san?"

183| @tagged | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

Relieved that Valerie was smiling again, Komachi grinned wildly and gave the green-haired girl a thumbs-up in understanding. Her shoulders slumped a bit, trying to relax, then jumped up again as a streak of pain went through, prompting the tailor to rotate her shoulder a bit as she watched Valerie chop the potatoes.

"I've been doing pretty nifty, honestly. Classes have been going well, we're getting to the interesting bits." Komachi chuckled, rocking back and forth slightly to take her mind off the subsiding smarting in her shoulder. "You know in junior high, you never would have thought classes about fashion design would be so detailed, but...here I am now. As my friend Yuki would say, it's like drinking out of a fire hose. But I don't mind, I'm enjoying it. Speaking of that Yuki..."

With a thought coming to her mind, Komachi pulled out her phone, checking her messages. Since she was busy getting things done backstage, she had set her status to Do Not Disturb. "...even though we went our own paths for high school...we still try to keep in touch," Komachi said, scrolling through her messages. "She's been so smitten with her girlfriend. ...I'd like to meet her someday."

With nothing urgent to respond to, Komachi put her phone away. Her strength had returned, enough for her to step out of her chair, drag it nearer to the counter where Valerie was working, and set it down, reversing it so that Komachi could lean forward on the back of the chair.

"Anyways. Things going okay for you? I mean, outside of school."

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

"Things tend to be more complex than at a glance, If a picture is worth a thousand words, I suppose the story behind it is a million." Valerie stated, her family situation coming to mind as she continued to work with her ingredients. She was surprised how popular Broccoli was in Japan, so she figured 'why not'. She needed to put some green in the meal, so... broccoli, bacon, sour cream, and cheese. That sounded like a good, if not exactly a low calorie meal. Eh, Komachi seemed like the kind of girl who'd burn the calories like an engine.

She continued prepping the ingredients, politely listening to Komachi until she got to the word 'girlfriend' in regards to one of her friends, who was also a girl. Valerie made a mental note. Valarie was still on the fence about whether or not she should be open about her own orientation, at least unless she found someone she liked. She wasn't about to sacrifice love on the altar, no pun intended, of social safety. If Komachi was friends with a lesbian, or at least a bisexual girl, then she could at least feel reassured that Komachi wouldn't be upset if she learned. Though she found not need to hamfistedly insert the fact of her sexuality into the conversation.

The ingredients, including the bacon, were ready. Though before beginning to assemble it, she looked towards Komachi again, and sighed, "Confusing. Honestly, I've had more time than I know what to do with, even with my part-time job. Back home, I had." She paused, though she quickly realized Komachi would know she was hiding something, "Some commitments that kept me quite busy, to say the least."

293 | @tagged | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

There was a wide grin on Komachi's face as she watched Valerie cook. The sight of it all being put together caused her stomach to grumble slightly, which she responded for with a soft laugh and a shake of the head. She noticed the broccoli with great interest, and nodded in naive approval. A crunchy texture balances out the mushy potato right?

Honestly, Komachi was rather jealous. The tailor knew how to cook, as far as being able to take care of herself goes, but it seemed like Valerie had some sort of instinct in her, and Komachi had to respect that. Sure, she could scrap together a mean outfit from the most disparate materials, but it seemed like Valerie had a better grasp on useful, practical skills.

As Valerie talked about her time, Komachi chuckled. "Commitments? Like taking care of the house? Bunch of siblings?" Komachi guessed, tilting her head. She was working largely on intuition, based on what she had seen through some of her other friends and spoke from that experience. "Well, a lot of families have both parents working hard, right? Mine too, though I guess I'm lucky that I just needed to take care of myself. But yeah, coming here, just down to a room for yourself and not even all to yourself. You can cook but you don't have to, and so on..."

Komachi nodded before smiling again. She had an idea.

"Hey, if you have time, why not hang out with me?" Komachi suggested. "Back in Tokyo, I had a bunch of friends and we'd go out and have all sorts of... hehe...adventures. Only like, two of them are here, and even then. We don't hate each other, just...they're from the calmer side of the group, you know? I mean, yeah we keep in touch..." The tailor pulled out her phone and flipped it around in the air, catching it handile. "But you know, there's a certain quality to face-to-face. Well, doesn't always have to be going somewhere. If you don't mind me bringing some scraps with me and toying with them while we chat or something."

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

The ingredients were prepared, now it was just time to assemble them. Picking up a knife, two Idaho potatoes were quickly but safely split open. With all the vegetables chopped, it was time to turn her attention to the meat. She'd waited this long, of course, because once she used her knife to cut raw meat, she'd be ill-advised to use it on anything else.

When Komachi said 'both parents working hard', she rolled her eyes - it was a good thing that she was facing the counter. She briefly turned back, with a bit of a sigh, "Correct. I have three younger siblings - two brothers and a sister. You find that in large families, older siblings play a role in taking care of the younger." A true fact, from what she understood happens in functional families. What she didn't tell Komachi was that she didn't just 'help', she played the role of 'parent'. She smiled a bit, "Honestly, it's that kind of thing that helps me now. If you can lead children, it's a good step forward in learning to lead adults."

She briefly turned back, before looking to Komachi again when addressed. She smiled a bit, "Well... that would be quite nice, I will admit. Even with my part-time job, I have more time than I really know what to do with." Valerie lacked... hobbies. Or really much of any idea of what she liked to do. She'd just been watching more TV and spending more time studying, occasionally talking to people. That being said, Valerie was still actually kind of curious, "But what kind of adventures did you get into?"

She turned back, and began chopping chicken and bacon.

### | @tagged | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

In her hunger-induced daze, Komachi tried but failed to follow along with Valerie's motions, not helped in particular that most of what she was seeing of the green-haired girl was her back. But Komachi enjoyed the company nonetheless and the food was a bonus, and it showed on the smile that the tailor was giving Valerie as she turned around. Not one of the mad smirks she had when she had an amazingly bold (and thus, horrible) idea, but rather a calm and contented one.

And three siblings. Komachi had seen the dynamics of the Sonohara household, where the two eldest sisters took care of the younger. It was hectic, and Komachi did not envy her best friend in the slightest, especially with one sister being rather...free-spirited. Komachi nodded respectfully, and again felt a bit envious. The tailor was proud of her skills, sure, but there was that creeping feeling of being outdone; Valerie seemed to have clawed her way up to where she was at Fukui, a greater distanace than what Komachi had to traverse.

Still, it was good to hear Valerie accept the invitation. More friends were always good, and Komachi seemed to rock back and forth in her chair happily as Valerie turned around.

"Our adventures, huh..." Komachi said, almost wistfully. "Well, we called ourselves the 'Investigation Club'. We weren't sanctioned by the school, but...the administrators didn't call us out on it. What we 'investigated' ranged from urban legends in our school to tips from classmates on people doing shady stuff to...being vigilant and vigilantes." There was a soft chuckle as Komachi rested her head against the top of the chair's backboard. "That last part is what made us notorious. I mean, who knew that exposing the most popular girl in school as being a fraud who cheated on her tests would cause backlash, right? And so on."

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

Valerie chuckled in concert with her friend, briefly pausing to look back at Komachi "Honestly, if it weren't for your links to your family's business, I'd almost be surprised you weren't angling for a police academy." a bit of a soft and serene, but jovial tone present in her speech. A part of her wondered what shenanigans she'd just agreed to, but to be honest... she was bored, and needed something to do. In a wider sense, not immediately.

"Sounds like it would cause a bit of trouble." Valerie explained, as she turned back to continue cooking. Part of her wondered whether she got over her head more than a few times, but everyone did occasionally. Even she could over commit at times: a trait both of them seemed to have in common.

Finally finishing the potatoes, she pulled open the over door, before putting in the dish and setting the time and temperature. With that done, she casually started turning towards the tired heiress again, "I can't say my friends got it. I occasionally went over to their house for visits, and just did whatever." It was those times, she felt, that she'd actually gotten to feel like a kid, instead of a particularly short adult. Now, it was difficult for her to even feel like the teen she was.

She turned to wash her hands at the nearby sink, scrubbing them clean and drying them, before pulling a chair near Komachi's to sit down on, while she waited for the dish to cook.

263 | @tagged | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

Would she have wanted to go into the Police Academy? For a moment, Komachi mused on that notion. Even her friend Yuki had second thoughts, enjoying tinkering with wires and circuit boards as much as apprehending people. For the tailor? Design was her calling from the start, a life in law enforcement was never for her. Maybe if she got to design the uniforms, or maybe even the armor! But that was it.

The opening of the oven door took Komachi's attention, feeling her hunger intensify as she watched the completed potatoes slide into the oven. From where she sat, they already looked pretty good, though that was likely due to the rabid hunger talking. Thankfully, the rumbling stomach was distracted by Valerie turning to her. It took a bit for Komachi to process what Valerie was saying, and even after Valerie sat down beside her, Komachi wasn't sure she understood.

"Nothing wrong keeping your nose clean," Komachi said, getting up from her chair so that she could sit properly in it. "I don't regret anything I did in middle school, but I do want to say that having a quote-unquote 'exciting' life can be a bit...overrated. And sometimes, when you're not asking for it, troubel comes to you" A hand lifted to Komachi's ear as if she was holding a phone and she rolled her eyes, then shook her head and sighed, changing the subject slightly. "Have you been able to maintain contact with your friends?"

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

"Fairly well, yes. I still have my old email and social media accounts, so staying in contact is a relatively simple matter, all things considered. I've also, of course, taken care to keep as close contact with my siblings as I can." They all had their own accounts, so it was relatively easy, all things considered. One had been outright adopted, but the others weren't doing quite as well. She momentarily frowned, as she felt a deep pang of guilt for a moment, her hand moving just below her heart, before she stopped herself from covering it in full.

Valerie decided she wanted to change the subject before she discussed her old life too much, it was... an uncomfortable subject, something that her somewhat compacted posture might give away, "Komachi, how are you feeling? I could get you a piece of fruit to tide over your appetite until its done." She'd never seen someone react so badly to hunger. It was why, despite the fact the Japanese typically ate smaller meals, Valerie had 'American-Sized' their own meals. "Have you been sleeping well?"

190 | @tagged | notes

ulla

i am not interested in fulfilling borrowed dreams

❝

"Hm? Nah, having you to chat with helps keep the dizziness at bay," Komachi replied, even though she still was swaying lightly in her chair. "I think I'll be okay until the potatoes are done. As for sleeping?" Komachi paused and blinked. In her famished state, she started to question the question, but decided it was more just to keep the conversation going as they waited for the food to cook.

"Well enough I suppose. Now, how long? That's another question. I'm happy with my work for the upcoming production. Proud of it, even. But I'm not entirely fond of some of the upperclassmen..." Komachi sighed as she rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I've been doing more work to make deadlines. Like today. Working a bit longer, you know? But...that just means I get to tell everyone I'm really running the show now. So when the credits roll." Komachi punched her palm. "All me. Well no. A lot of the underclassmen are helping me out too. I'm actually a little jealous you know?" Komachi tilted her head and smiled softly as Valerie. "You seem to have a better grasp of your crew than me. I have the charisma to make people buy stuff, but not exactly run a show."

Komachi sniffed a little and looked to the oven. Was that the potatoes she was smelling? Or was it an artifact of her gnawing hunger?

Valerie Belrose ● notes: ● 000

MADE BY MIZO

 i am a flower quickly fading 

The fact Komachi was talking being dizzy like it was nothing made the girl cringe. Komachi could probably afford state of the art medical care there was like it was nothing, but all that quite frankly didn't amount to a hill of beans, if she didn't actually make the least effort to take care of her health. She made a mental note that, once Komachi was done with her meal, to see if she was feeling better.

Valerie nodded gently, "I can understand. Some people let power go to their head. We can only do what we can to set the stage in a few years, to keep it from becoming... a thing, so to speak." Toxic cultures weren't fun in any institution. She supposed they'd have to be the good girls and set a good example, "But I suppose we'll have a lot of responsibility as well too later on."

The buzzer on the over went off, and Valerie slightly chided herself when she rushed to the oven. True, the producer-in-training was rather hungry as well, but Komachi was half-starved. She took the dish out, and asked, "Would like some butter. Sadly, I have a hard time finding sour cream over here." It wasn't the most common ingredient, to be fair.

220 | @tagged | notes

ulla