madame marion-go-round

He rested his head atop yours, and cool sweat dripped into your hair. His breaths almost matched yours, despite you having just ran. Even if he had more rest than you, the sun beat down with no clouds- almost everyone on the stage should have consumed more than a full water bottle since they left the stage.

"Nothing to say to me?" you wiped away a bit of the sweat.

"Can you stay here for a bit?" his eyes stayed closed. "Mhm."

He pushed his fingers against yours, then his palm. His tiredness was contagious; you let his fingers move as he pleased. He rubbed his thumb on the side of yours, breathing steadily and humming a beat you hadn't heard before.

"New song?" you moved your fingers between his.

He nodded. "You like it?" his hand held yours.

You didn’t have enough energy to care about “lady-like wording”. 

“The ball wasn’t in the plan. In fact, the dinner went totally off-the-rails last night and nothing important that was supposed to take place actually happened.” Even if he was acting largely irresponsible, calling him “Mr. Duke” at the end of that would be too mean. Regardless, a ball was completely unnecessary for an informational meeting. In fact, this could’ve all been mail. You already had enough to worry about with multiple people trying to kill you- and now this?

As if his sigh prompted him to bring your hand close enough to feel the tingle of his hot breath, he mumbled something and brought your hand to his forehead as you leaned over the table and the documents on it. 

“What’s wrong with you? Can we have a conversation at least?” You came in here demanding answers, not some romantic tomfoolery from a contract husband.

Tsukasa opened his eyes, looked down for a brief moment, then looked towards you. “Yes, you’re right.” he let go of your hand and waved the documents to the side. “Let’s sit at the parlor, shall we?” He stood up and started walking so promptly that for a moment all you could do was nod. Perhaps standing across the bright sun behind his desk wasn’t a conducive environment for having a conversation. Even without noticing in the moment, your squinted eyes were probably something to laugh at a little. Even if it were preferable, what kind of man simply gets up and starts walking to relocate an argument? 

The floor’s squeaks were all you could hear in the manor during your short walk to the parlor. Intricate patterns in the shape of feathers, swirl patterns, and anything fancy filled the walls, as if telling a story. It was difficult to make out, but the story was about a horse fighting a bird. For a moment you believed a breath stuck in your core could be relieved by the tactile sensation of these wooden carvings, but before you absentmindedly could relieve that urge, you found yourself sitting down in the parlor. 

Lace curtains covered the blinding nature of the sun- you could see Tsukasa clearly now. His hair was disheveled and bags were forming under his eyes. You didn’t say anything and wondered why he would work so hard for something that could have been avoided. 

He took a deep breath.

“I’m sorry, you look tired.” said the one who looked incredibly tired himself. “You want me to explain why I decided to have a ball on such short notice, right?” You nodded. 

“It’s kind of complicated, but, uh, I’ll do my best to explain it.” you nodded again in acknowledgement. He just looked so haggard. 

“I listened to the conversations they were having. The branch families looked extremely unsatisfied as they walked in and greeted us, and especially towards you, some even didn’t bother to look at you. It is customary in our clan to face all who lead the meeting- you were also at the head of the table.” You nodded. It was true that some were snickering and gossiping while others didn’t exactly have the friendliest looks on their faces. Still, it didn’t warrant all this.

“It’s to be expected. Me being in the picture wasn’t planned, and I was certainly a surprise. Besides, it hasn’t been long since I got here.” you added. That type of reaction wasn’t out of the ballpark at all. 

“Yes, but here in the Suou family, everyone knows that this behavior is unacceptable. Perhaps it was due to the quite strict nature of some of the previous heads of the family, but since my father’s time, it was clear in each meeting that such behavior is prohibited. Gosh, if only it was a behavioral problem. They’re free to gossip all they like with their friends, but within this family, such disrespect to the Lady of the house is unacceptable. I still have their interest in the scroll, which is why almost all of those who attended the dinner have extended their stay.” Dude, get to the point.

“Mister, quit the lecture. How about the TLDL,” Callie came out of nowhere. “And Miss, you aren’t even dressed. What are you doing? This can’t be that serious, come on now.” said the one who ruined the first moments of your morning.

Every single question you had in your mind at that moment disappeared, and the anger you had stormed in with this morning was replaced by confusion and embarassment. What was this girl doing? Did she forget that she was employed here? Actually, she was kind of doing her job when you ran out and she found you to take you back to what you were doing, but really? Where were her manners? Perhaps she was spoiled-

“TLDL?” Tsukasa’s unnecessarily long eyelashes fluttered as he repeatedly blinked in confusion.

“Too long, didn’t listen.” Callie leaned on the doorframe. “Anyways, since I can’t just be standing here and joining in on your very noble and important conversation, I either need to take my lady here to get ready for the day as she’s still, frankly, in mostly her undergarments, or I can take my leave now and return when it is time for her to get ready.” 

Oh, that was your cue. Shit, this conversation wasn’t over. And undergarments my butt, this was an under dress. 

“Can you come back in 15 minutes, Callie? In the meantime, it would be great if you could just pick out all my accessories. And if you have time, pick out what I’ll be wearing at the ball we’re planning. Just put everything aside or something.” It made sense for sure, but sit all stumbled out of your mouth like you were pulling this sentence out of your ass.

Callie gave you a thumbs up, which probably implied something, but it was absolutely unclear and yesterday’s fatigue made it especially alluring to ignore whatever she implied. 

Tsukasa cleared his throat. “I apologize… yesterday’s events just bring out so much-” he paused. “I’m not sure how to phrase this- feeling of injustice.” You wanted to say that it wasn’t that deep, but that entire conversation would’ve been unproductive. Tsukasa stared at the floor for a few seconds before continuing.

“Anyways, none of the branch members had the guts to say they had a problem with you and may have been planning something in front of our faces, which is unacceptable.” he sighed. You could almost hear him say, “After all, we are the main family of the clan.” 

“I am keeping the scroll for the ball so that they have ample reason to attend, as balls have historically been optional, and it can double as an affirmation to our relationship and solidify your position. I chose this type of event because the grander it is, the more we can assert your position within the clan, as well as make headlines that make their way to Drakos- I want to test their strategy.” Tsukasa glanced at the chess board at the guest reception area of his office. 

“If something like this can cause immediate aggression while they are still strengthening their army, we know that they will be easy to fight and likely will be led directly by Erebus. If not, it may be safe to assume he has hired someone specialized in military strategy. Either way, it will be valuable information. Is that alright? Do you understand? I apologize if-” He scrambled for words.

“It’s fine, Tsukasa.” you couldn’t even be mad anymore. Despite his airheaded appearance as of late, he wasn’t dumb; how else could his dukedom be largely prosperous? It only took a couple of years for a leader to destroy their land- and the Suou dukedom was nowhere near destruction. “I guess I should’ve trusted you.” 

Tsukasa’s smile may have been originally for the wall behind him, but he was careless to let you see a slip of it before Callie came in.

“Actually, I’m done, so-” 

“How? That was, like, two seconds.” you interrupted her. 

“I’m just that good. Come on, it looks bad on both of us that you’re not dressed yet and it’s almost lunch. Let’s go.” 

You got up. What noblewoman gets scolded by her own maid? As you sulked your way to the door, a hand made its way to your shoulders and the tingle of a hot break near your ear. 

“This coat will be good in the meantime-” you don’t let Tsukasa finish whispering as you put your hands into the arms of the coat and he tied the front from behind you. You only realized you had forgotten to thank him after Callie shooed you out of the parlor. 

Despite Callie’s roughness with her voice this morning, she still didn’t let the itchy threads made for detailing touch your skin as she helped you on with your dress today. Even with this unfamiliar wardrobe, at least putting on dresses made to hamper independence didn’t physically feel horrendous. 

“To tell you the truth, my lady, all the dresses are so fancy they could be worn to any fancy event,” Callie quickly put a pin between her lips as she made sure not to tug your hair too tight as she fixed it. “I didn’t pick anything out, just set some dresses aside that I thought would be nice. Mentally.” 

You couldn’t be mad at that. In fact, all the dresses were so fancy they all should have been reserved for only special occasions. Noble life of this scale was too grandiose for comfort.

“All done. Shall I ask the Duke for instructions regarding attire for the ball? We may have to go to the tailor if there are other plans.” Callie looked in the mirror with you. “I think our hairstyles are pretty similar today. Just realized that.” You agreed with her about the hairstyle, but you’d go to Tsukasa for information about the ball yourself. Despite being pissed off about the ball happening, you still had to do your part. There was a week to prepare, so preparing promptly would be a good idea. 

As you sent Callie off to her break for the day and made your way back to Tsukasa’s office, you took note of the volume of your footsteps. The shoes weren’t nearly commanding enough. You’d have Callie look for shoes that might work later. 

“Tsukasa, are you in? Just need additional details for preparation.” You held the knob as you knocked on his door. 

“You can always simply enter, my lady,” Tsukasa got up to open the door as you let yourself in.

“And you still reached for the door for me.” your lips couldn’t help but curl up a little. 

“Sorry, just a habit. Do you want me to stop?” his eyes begged for you to say no. 

You assured him could do as he pleased, and you asked about the attire planned for the ball, as well as anything else you could help with.  

Tsukasa leaned his head back and opened his mouth to sigh. Before answering, he sat in one of his office’s receiving couches and you followed suit.

“I’m awaiting a response from the designers about the color palette and overall design of the ball, and by then I’ll be able to give you answers on the dress, shoes and other things like that. I do have a painting that needs to be done. The artist said he can do it any day this week, would you like to do that?” He fiddled with his hair. “We’ll both have to pose, but I won’t be able to be there as long. The painting will go quicker the longer you sit there, although I know paintings are terribly boring. They will be displayed at the ball as well, so please arrange it with Lapel if you have the time. He’s in his office today rather than mine.” 

You nodded. As much as you were stressed about the ball on such a short notice, it was still a week away. Besides, most of your time was actually off, despite your worry. Instead of learning magic for Erebus, you had the freedom to do almost anything else (within the estate, as Erebus and Mairi were still threats).

Before you got up from the couch to make your way to Lapel to arrange for the painter to be as soon as you were free, you took a good look at the man you were supposed to go with- he’d leaned his head back against the back of the plush seat, his bottom lip pushing up. His hair from this morning was the same- too many out of place hairs for a portrait. It would only be right for the painter to have an accurate figure to paint. Besides, for a man who had looked haggard all day and probably since last night, dragging him to the painter would have been plain cruel. 

“I’m sorry you have to see me like this. I just-” he turned his face away from you as you sank back into your seat next to him. “Why can’t there be a time of peace? Everyone has issues and everything is an issue for everyone. All these problems are stupid! Everything worth doing is too much!” 

You shifted your weight to your right hand as you put your left over his eyes. Even as the distance felt closer and closer from your hand sinking into the plush couch, there was no other priority than telling him to get some rest. A duke’s work wasn’t easy for someone so young- someone who needed to sleep and eat well. These days, it was evident Tsukasa did neither. 

Even though it was quite a delayed reaction, he jumped slightly in his seat and turned to face you, his face red of blush, a cute contrast to his purple eyes. Even if you normally giggled, a small smile crept up on your lips instead. It felt more human to see less of a “perfect duke” and more of just Tsukasa.  

“Wha-” he hid his blush behind his arms, although to no avail, “What’re you doing?” 

You finally broke into a giggle. After all, flustered Tsukasa was the best. “I think you look better when you’re well-rested. I’m sorry for storming in here this morning. It was unbecoming of me.” 

He then turned to face the back of the couch, burying his face into the fabric.

“Tsukasa?” 

He mumbled something into the fabric, and you sat back onto the couch to look at him closely. He shifted his body to face you, his hair imprinted by the way it was folded and pressed against the couch. “I just want to relax. Of course, I love helping the people, but there’s just too much work to be done. There are many things to correct, even in this family. I love them all, and they all have their good sides to them, but I can’t forgive how brazen and entitled they are. I am the one who works for our clan’s prestige. The duchy is how they are judged, after all.” 

Your answer was the same. You brought your hand to his eyes and nudged his head down, to which he brought to your lap. “You can’t pour from an empty cup. You’re human, after all.” You urged him to rest. 

He didn’t have time to show his blush, as his fatigue raised the weight of lips and ushered him to sleep. It would be a shame to wake up such a deprived man.

WORD COUNT | 2780 words

NOTES FROM QIAN | hi this series is extremely self indulgent. if you would like to join the taglist, please send me an ask [ tags in the reblogs ]. ALSO I ORIGINALLY WANTED TO HAVE CH 9 END WAAAAY AFTER THIS BUT IT ENDED UP BEING SO LONG I SPLIT IT INTO CH 9 AND 10. since the next part of the chapter has a different focus anyway, it’s fine

Bzzt. He sent something before you could finish typing. “I just landed. I’ll be out in a bit, so please wait for me! I got you some gifts :D”  Of course you were going to wait for him, silly Tsukasa. You kept your eyes peeled in front of you, just in case, as you texted him back. 

After a few minutes of scanning the crowd, you could feel the edges of your lips form a smile as you waved to him, and with a big smile on his face, he waved back and hurried to the end of the line.  

As soon as he saw you, he left no room for thinking about his luggage as his arms wrapped tightly around you, his head buried in your shoulder. Life without this body heat in the cruelty of winter was over. 

“I wanna see your face,” you pouted, and he faced you. You brought your hands to pinch his cheeks, to which he puffed them out and called you a “meanie”. You giggled, because he just looked adorable.

Very pretty. That was all you could think about- his hair all messed up on the airplane, the place under his eyes that he liked kissed, the earrings he was wearing today. He had that signature soft smile of his, and both you and him couldn’t help but say,

First off, I'd like to recommend reading @ATMforTKS' own summation of the failings of Mainstream Megasphere as a story for Anzu: "[EnStars] Mainstream Megasphere: ​​Anzu's Disappearance on EnStar's 10th Anniversary:". It's in reading there work this morning that gave me the final push to clean up my drafts about my own thoughts, and they were much more eloquently and intelligently able to point out the faults of the story in Anzu's side that even I didn't immediately notice even after rereading the story again and again. Consider my own essay as a mere companion piece to theirs for an english speaking audience, as well as my own personal ramblings.

Bear in mind, I am an AnzuP. I like Anzu the most, she is my favorite Enstars character. If anyone reads this, please don't get confused that I'm absolutely only focused on reading this story with Anzu in mind, and miss some plot points or developments of the idols. Also gonna be nitpicky. and overthink. Please don't laugh at me for being a fan of Anzu who for some reason actually believed for a second that Happy Elements or their random new sub-writers would know her lore or even care to develop her.

I wanted to do my absolute best to not let other people's opinions on the story to cloud my own, since I did go out of my way to read the story myself and poorly explain it to others too. After reading, there was a sour taste in my mouth that I couldn't understand where was coming from. At a glance, this story had all the Anzu glazing that should please a simple-minded fan like myself.

But then I realized it's because everyone who liked Anzu, who knew her history, who knew how deep her character ran, who knew her story beyond as a vessel for the player, had expectations for Mainstream Megasphere. I mean so did I. I admittedly dropped enstars for a year, but had to dust off the app just to read the story. The story had potential, and it's initial summary was one that many AnzuPs like myself had fantasized for a decade.

Anzu "runs away from being a producer, and the idols chase after her," it's a classic what-if scenario I've read in multiple fanfics before, and even came up with my own version on my head multiple times.

"But why did you put such high expectations for material regarding Anzu in this story anyway? She's just the player character" is what most enstarries might be thinking. I'm not gonna tire myself out by going through all the reasons why she's more than that, or why fans of Anzu specifically still hold high expectations for the story to cover her character in the way they used to. We just did. We had expectations.

I think the best way to summarize why Mainstream Megasphere wasn't able to deliver a satisfying story for Anzu is because, well, fans who know her expected (or more accurately: HOPED. WISHED. PRAYED) for it to tie back to her Kimisaki Academy lore, and her feelings portrayed in the Ensemble Stars Novelization. For the feelings and actions now to mirror the ones she had back then. For there to be a 10th year celebration of not only Ensemble Stars' idols, but also of its protagonist too. Its protagonist who have a history that is longer than the game she is housed in now. But because it didn't, all I can see now when I reread Mainstream Megasphere is how it's premise has been done much better in its predecessor's game.

I feel so silly looking back at tweets where I hyped up the story in its initial first two batches of story releases (the first 11 and 15 chapter drops) because my livetweet thread (as insufficient and full of misinterpretations as it currently stands) ends in such a "meh" note. Not happy or dissatisfied. It was just fine. There was something that was very lacking in the final release batch that bothered me. I noticed it in the second batch too, but the Megasphere hijacking was so silly that it slipped past me. I enjoyed how far the idols would go to see Anzu, and how they willingly put their careers on the line just to be able to speak with her. But the cracks in the story were showing back then too.

Dropped Callback Pattern (?)

I kept pointing it out while reading the story, but I noticed that the first batch of chapters had a pattern where the idols would woe over Anzu's resignation, and their inability to notice her suffering sooner, then reminiscing about an event where she had helped them in the past. (this point would be even stronger if I could name the particular stories/events they are referencing, but while I am familiar with what each is, I don't actually know the specific names. So sorry about that. If you read the story you'd know.)

Knights, 4katsuki, Crazy:B, Ryuseitai and Fine did it.

Trickstar discusses it in a more general way, but they don't really need to go into specifics since Anzu is consistently integral to their story anyways. Plus Hokuto made one in his earlier talk with Anzu.

MDU arguably did it? moreso giving a nod to how Chitose started out as coworkers with Anzu and how he's been concerned of how she's been doing for a while now.

When the second story batch released, that patten mostly disappeared as the idols went to the planning stage of their escape to see Anzu on land. It's not like I was seriously expecting every single unit to have a chapter crying over Anzu's disappearance lol. Lots of people were excited to see how the other remaining units reacted to Anzu leaving, but I do understand that repeating that over and over again verbatim would be boring. Mixing that in with their individual contemplations on whether to participate in Trickstar's rebellion would be great, and it had room to bring up Anzu's involvement in their unit too.

Don't get me wrong, there ARE references to how Anzu had helped them in the past, but the references suddenly are either pretty recent or non-specific.

Ra*bits was great! Great mix of contemplation for their involvement, experiences with Anzu, and callbacks to past event(s)

Eden and 2Wink referenced a more recent story event, but generally talked about their experience with Anzu as a whole.

Esupuri referenced an earlier story in the Megasphere arc, which I won't complain about like with MDU because they are very new.

Valkyrie, Undead, Switch and Alkaloid were pretty general, with either "She has helped us a lot so we're grateful to her" or "this particular idol really cares for her" type of deal without specifics. Focused more on the situation at hand/plan for the rebellion.

Did MaM have a reference? I feel like his line about regretting not doing something to help support her sooner reminds me of Hospital Visit, but everyone in the story has said something in the same degree so maybe it's not. Goes into the generalized pile ig.

It didn't feel as personal to Anzu as it did as the first story chapter batch, if that makes sense? I'm willing to give my approval for Eden's since they didn't try to shoehorn being grateful to Anzu as a unit, but mostly focused on Ibara's personal feelings about her as a fellow producer.

What was also interesting to me was Esupuri's involvement. As the newest group with the least attachment to Anzu, it almost felt like they were peer pressured into participating in the rebellion (in my opinion). Esu was the only one really worried about Anzu, and was concerned because all their seniors were up in arms about her resignation and he feels indebted to Anzu. Yume, Raika, and Kanna mostly just follow their leader; they even asked him why he was so worried. I saw JP tweets of people feeling sad that Yume was so cold, considering he's come to acknowledge Anzu in previous stories, but I don't particularly mind. They appreciate Anzu as their producer but not as a friend, unlike the others.

There's always the possibility that the references flew over my head, I'm not exactly the best at remembering stories outside of when or how Anzu is involved after all, so I'm willing to be called out for incorrectly judging the second batch of chapters.

Did they *need* to follow this pattern? No... but it was such a shame that they didn't. They were already off the a great start with everyone reminiscing their history with Anzu, and how important she was in their journey. Proceeding with that pattern and committing to it with all units, new and old, would have been wonderful to players regardless of whether they project onto Anzu or not.

It really felt like someone else was at the helm for some of these chapters, and I watched the way people react when these dropped too. When the first batch dropped, many were sure Akira was involved, but suddenly the reactions from the JP side that I saw started to become unsure after this, and even more so with the final release. It was such a shame, it would have been so cool to see all the OG units reference older events as a callback, to look back on the game's 10 year history.

We're all in this together (?)

After he second batch of stories dropped, and some time after the final story batch released, a lot of JP fans were quite upset at the implication of the story. In the second batch, Mao and Makoto told everyone to really think about whether they would join Trickstar's rebellion against Megasphere to bring Anzu back, because it could come at the cost of their very careers as idols. If they get caught, the main selling point of Megasphere could collapse, and all the participants could be called inauthentic frauds who strung the audience along with a false promise of 24/7 accessible idols. That's why each unit had to think over what Anzu means to them, in order to decide whether to partake or not. Many JP fans were upset at the notion that the idols are all willing to put their careers on the line for Anzu. Many fans, who I'm guessing prefers to enjoy enstars from the perspective of a "fan" and not as "producers" per se, felt betrayed at the idea that the idols would rather their careers all fall than to lose Anzu. It apparently gave them the impression that the idols are blatantly saying they will choose Anzu over their fans, which upset them.

I'm an Anzu fan, and everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I think this hit a sore spot because all the units unanimously agree to partake in the rebellion against Megasphere.

It seemed to have crossed into some people's minds how valid it is for each unit to participate in this possibly career-ending rebellion. At a glance, of course they would! They all care for Anzu and wants her to be the one to produce them till the very end. But realistically speaking, at the cost of their careers? Do all of them really have a strong enough bond with Anzu to put her over their idol careers?

Again, the post by HNKW/@ATMforTKS already discussed this in a much better and objective way btw please read it.

It's easy to assume that all the units care for Anzu so much that they are willing to go through hell for her. Everyone is made to play the game from Anzu's perspective, therefor it would be normal for players to project their own affections for the unit as the perspective of the producer, who is Anzu. Things like minitalks, and campaigns where idols give fanservice to the player, like Valentines or Halloween voicelines, helps to blur the line between Player and Producer too. So one might think that the Producer(Player) is really close to the unit, but what about the Producer(Anzu)?

Realistically speaking, not every idol/unit should be as gung-ho in retrieving Anzu to the point of risking their career as much as Trickstar does. For Trickstar, it's a given: Anzu is their 5th member, that's their ride or die. They treasure Anzu as much as she treasures them, and they know they wouldn't be where they are without her efforts.

To be fair, they did address this in the story: newer units like Eden, Alkaloid, Crazy:B, and Esupuri were initially unsure of whether Anzu was worth pursuing because they respected her decision to leave and didn't want to risk their careers, but still agreed anyways because she had helped them. Which is a fine enough explanation, I'm sure they also must have had faith in the rebellion actually succeeding too, which would lessen the hesitation to participate (not that they mention that, it's just a guess on my part).

I get that every unit should feel close to Anzu, I really do! But I can't help but wonder how much of it is a generalized or idealized version of the unit's relationship with Anzu, or simply an outcome of wanting to give maximum player fan-service for those who don't consider Anzu as her own character but just a vessel for the player, regardless of Anzu's actual involvement with them (by-product or overthinking and cynicism). The fact that they settled on who gets to pick Anzu up with rock-paper-scissors is indicative of the story framing it as if everyone equally wants Anzu to be brought back no matter what, when really it should depend? Or at least I agree with Subaru that Trickstar should have def went down LMAO

I know the game wants to frame it as an all or nothing type deal for the player, it'd be awkward to accidentally write someone's favorite unit off. It's like I can't help but be stuck in a position where I'm so happy they are putting everything on the line for Anzu—their producer, peer, and friend—but also feel like it's insufficiently explained and forced.

From what I saw, it seems that JP fans of certain groups, who don't feel like *Anzu* is particularly close to their favorite units, don't understand why they would participate in the rebellion. One could argue that we should take the author's word for it and take the contents as it is, but there's a difference between interpreting something differently from the author(s) and noticing contradiction with information or relationships.

"Well, are you saying you would have preferred if only a few units cared for her disappearance, and the rest didn't care enough to help bring her back?" Not really... I think they should all be concerned and participate to get her back, but they could have done a better job at selling it more considering not all units have a bond as strong as the ones Anzu shared with her peers in Yumenosaki. It doesn't help that some of the units were very simple and general about why they decided to help Trickstar. Especially with their careers on the line. More convincing to make up for their canon lack of interactions with Anzu.

Did I buy it? When I first read it, admittedly I did, but after sitting on it for a while and seeing fans of the units react negatively, I was like hmmm maybe they are onto something (cynicism). For many players, "she's nice and we owe a lot of her" isn't enough to risk their careers for (Esupuri and Alkaloid's initial hesitation was good), especially if previous stories doesn't back it well or they don't explain their thought process well enough. Like psh I don't need to imagine what it would be like if the fans of the idol units found out that they idols left Megasphere for Anzu, I already saw it IRL lol.

Anzu's internal conflict?

Another great time to remind that AnzuPs had expectations for this story when the Anzu made a cameo on Hokuto's unbloomed, and when the summary of the story dropped with its preview.

Put yourself in the headspace of someone who is a fan of Anzu, as a character. We got a very dramatic unbloomed illustration, and a summary that says Anzu has run away from the pressures put on her shoulders so the idols chase after her to bring her back. To fans of Anzu, alarm bells would ring. It was so easy to draw parallels from her time in Kimisaki Academy, her motivation and loyalty when she arrived in Yumenosaki, her outlook as a producer to the idols etc.

We've seen Anzu run away before! The reason she arrived in Yumenosaki is an outcome of her decision to flee from Kimisaki. We've seen how her cowardly (in her opinion) departure left people confused, with a lot of mixed reactions. People who didn't understand why she left but rationalized it in their own different ways.

And Enstars wanted to have their own take on that? This could be huge for her, to see her fall into the same pit she did in the past. It was possible that unlike her Kimisaki friends who couldn't reach out and give them a piece of mind till long after, the idols will actually be able to tell her how they feel immediately. and we could see how things could have happened differently.

(putting google translations for now... sorry....)

We might have gotten a glimpse into how Anzu feels about running away AGAIN, after vowing to never do that again. People tend to forget while constantly joking about how much of an "overworked girlboss" Anzu is, but she really personally cares for the idols, and she has pride in her work as a producer. She had, in some occasions fought to keep her position and prove she can be a good producer for them. The better producer she is, the more she can lift those idols up. So to be driven to the point where she has lost all confidence in herself had so much potential, and I think the first chapter with the talk with Hokuto was really really good! The fact that Hokuto's unrelenting and overwhelming trust in Anzu has become a weight she can no longer carry, and she envies his confidence in her because has lost all of it herself was so heartbreaking. The food was good and I was eating like a king.

Then I read the chapter where Hokuto, Eichi, Tetora, Kuro, Arashi, Yuuta, and Rinne find Anzu in the 2A classroom in Yumenosaki Academy. The set-up was done very well. Hokuto thinking of 2A when reminiscing about his journey as an idol, and thinking that Anzu must have thought of that too was really sweet.

My problem is when they finally get to confront her about why she ran away. Throughout the first and second batches of story release, the idols also makes sure to note that they do not think they should assume what Anzu felt when she ran away. They have their guesses, especially since they found out Anzu has been posting short promo videos under "@nazonofan_X" (what a cool callback...) but one of the main reasons they came to retrieve her was to at least talk to her and understand her position, if they can't convince her to come back with them. So I was excited for that. Not allowing the idols to speculate frames her conflict as possibly being something that's not common or predictable, something deeply personal to her.

Hokuto and the gang guesses that the reason why Anzu resigned and left Megasphere is because she is terrified of the consequences if her production will lead the ES idols towards defeat against Mellow Dear Us; that everyone will not only be disappointed in her as a producer, but the ES idols as well, and their reputation could tank because of her shortcomings. Anzu doesn't want to cause trouble for the idols, so she left so she doesn't have to be the one to produce them. Perhaps if Anzu was not the one to produce them, then maybe they'd have a fighting chance. Because she has lost all confidence in herself (Re: when Subaru said that Hokuto telling Anzu to do her best next time, when she already tried yet failed, did nothing more than make her feel cornered). Anzu then decided to cheer on them in her own way while on land, by creating promo videos for them. Because even though she left of her own accord, she can't get them out of her head. With each new video she made of the idols, her admiration and appreciation for them grew even more too. She wanted to fight for them, in whatever way she can even as she returned to land.

—and I think that's all so very sweet!! That's so sad and beautiful! It's a realistic worry for her to have when her actions will put not only herself but the idols on the line, and they are against such a terrifying foe like NiceP and MDU.

but... something was off. I'm not going to pretend I didn't have expectations for this confrontation, that I didn't have my own version of these scene play around in my head before the official version released. I'm not going to pretend I wasn't reading this story with a "Kimisaki Anzu-lens".

If this was the conflict the author(s) had in mind when they wrote the story, then who am I to argue. I'm the one who put big expectations on the story to reference such a key part in Anzu's history in her game where she came from (Ensemble Girls!) even though there was no explicit basis on that assumption..........

But I (personally!!!!) felt like something was different between the first chapter, and the chapter where they confronted Anzu. Like there's a subtle difference in her conflict.

(For this part, feel free to disagree with me. I know I might be overthinking things, or projecting her Kimisaki conflict too much into her Mainstream Megasphere conflict. I am willing to be thrown tomatoes for my assumptions)

There's like a conflict between writers about WHY Anzu ran away and resigned from Megasphere. As I read Chapter 1, what I read was Anzu struggling because she didn't want to disappoint herself and the idols. Like it was all internal. "I can't choose", "I'm jealous [of Hokuto's strength]", "Please don't trust me so much", "I can't do this anymore (bear the weight of victory or loss in her shoulders)"; what I got was that Anzu felt so bad about her defeat in Dynamic Diamond because she believed they had a fighting chance, so when they lost, it made her lose all confidence in herself. She's fallen short on her expectations on herself, and possibly the idols too. She isn't fit to be the producer who will lead them to victory no matter how hard she tried, even though she wanted to be strong enough to lead them. Ibuki's line, wondering why Anzu took it harder than the actual idols who participated in DD, kinda even hinted as much. It was personal.

Again, I didn't read the entire Megasphere arc, so I didn't know Anzu was also in conflict with NiceP's methods until I read other people's thoughts on Mainstream Megasphere. Anzu is the kind of person who would pay out of her own pocket to support the idols of Yumenosaki even after she graduated, supported NEGI who wanted to bring more attention to female idols, went independent/freelance to be able to support the idols in her own way even if it conflicts with ES, and worries for the idols who will be left behind if NiceP's producing methods become commonplace. If we ignore my ramblings related to my personal reading of Anzu's conflict, then objectively Anzu feeling despair and defeated over being boxed by NiceP's system that she rejects/is in conflict with and has no confidence she can lead them to victory while playing by his rules is also a very good conflict for her! Like Subaru said, she's been pushed into a corner!

It goes back to her reasons from running away from Kimisaki Academy too. Anzu perceives her fleeing from Kimisaki Academy as an outcome of her cowardice and selfishness. Reika and Chizuru also see it in the same way to some extent; she ran away (to leave her old past behind and to start anew,) leaving behind the friends who cared for her to pick up the pieces.

When Anzu ran away once, it was to escape from the consequences of her actions. When Anzu ran away now, I thought it would be because of something similar. She ran to protect the idols and herself, ran to not disappoint them and herself, like how she ran away to save herself from Kimisaki. It was an intrapersonal conflict that made her resign as a Producer of ES. or at least I thought that was what they were going for.

But then the confrontation of Anzu in Yumenosaki Academy revealed that the conflict was external. "You're scared of us losing", "people would be disappointed in you as a producer, and thus to us as idols" are focused on what other people would feel. We don't get Anzu's parroted line, we have to take the boys' words as fact. Anzu left because she doesn't want her poor production to lead them towards defeat, and have their public reputations suffer because of her. Because they could lose and be humiliated if they continue to put all their faith in her leadership. That they would be disappointed in her if they realized all that faith they put in her was for naught. It was an interpersonal conflict that made her resign as a Producer of ES.

Not because she despaired over her own shortcomings, not because she's wants to escape from the consequences of her choices, not because she rejects NiceP's system, but because the public might come to be disappointed in the idols if her decisions will lead them to failure/defeat.

Look, I'm not saying both conflicts can't coexist, they absolutely can! Naturally, if Anzu lost all confidence in herself as a producer, then she'd be scared about how that would affect the idols' reputation if they lose. How the idols would take it. How the public would take it. It's definitely possible that I'm just overthinking things and projecting her Kimisaki lore too much.

But for lots of Anzu fans, we wanted this story to be a celebrating of her story, of having her own ego, just as much as it celebrates the bonds she's built up with the idols for the 10 years that the game has been running. For the story to respect and understand her origins too. It would have been the perfect callback, in the same way the story is already chalk-full of so many callbacks.

But it didn't deliver on that, they didn't want to make her struggle seem ego-driven and personal, and instead played Anzu's struggle as something safe and relatable. Because all of us can relate to the feeling of being scared about not living up to the expectations of others, right? Chitose even said as much.

At the time, I saw some tweets speculate that some parts where written by different authors (can't give source, just trust me bro. I saw them with my own eyeballs, I know I retweeted them but can't be bother to dig for it) and when I saw those tweets, I couldn't help but agree. Or perhaps its my Kimisaki-Anzu lens clouding my vision. It's like two different writers wrote the first and last batch of chapters. Or there was a main writer who gave the outline of the story, but the sub-writers didn't know Anzu's character to properly enough connect the dots.

I'm not a writer nor a super Anzu expert, so I'm not gonna pretend like I could have written it better. Maybe if they just acknowledged that Anzu's reasons for leaving were more internal rather than external, it would have been much better. But god forbid this game even allow Anzu to have thoughts of her own anymore.

What was the point of making NiceP expect to see Anzu's own kind of production throughout Megasphere if they won't even let her have a personal thought of her own? NiceP wanted to see Anzu's colors as a producer, but then the writers didn't bother to acknowledge her character outside of being a producer? Her greatest strength wasn't her personal outlook as a producer, but simply that she's well-trusted by all the idols to a fault?

Anzu left, then she returned

If I had a nickel for every time Anzu runs away and leaves a group of people in shambles over her sudden departure, I'd have two nickels!

Eh, for this one I can definitely say my Kimisaki-Anzu lens is clouding my vision. Just a bunch of minor observations I have.

I'm surprised that only Koga was really angry at her. Most people are apologetic towards her, is confused why she would leave without saying a word/in spite of her character, or is disappointed but chooses to respect her feelings. I guess it's because they really put a lot of trust and care in Anzu that they are giving her the most benefit of the doubt. The idols unanimously understand that only a real moment of weakness could force Anzu to leave in such a haste. But they should be allowed at the other possible implications it might have, even though they are generous enough not to speculate about Anzu's feelings. They didn't even think about it, they shut down any speculation immediately. I know it's because the writers don't want the idols to assume the worst of Anzu (and essentially, the player, as to not hurt their feelings). To be fair, in Engirls, only Reika was really mad rather than betrayed, so Koga might be a parallel to her. But Reika's anger was more solid and attempted to shame Anzu more, meanwhile Koga was quick to forgive when she returned.

The entire rebellion/Megasphere hijacking was so silly, no notes.

I saw a tweet about how there should have been more chapters of the idols getting angry at Anzu (for leaving without saying anything), and chapters about Anzu getting angry at the idols (for the rebellion) which i agree with. They never addressed it, but Anzu has every right to be mad. She left because (according to the story) she didn't want to risk their careers by making them lose under her guidance, yet they proceeded to risk their careers to be able to bring her back to the Megasphere. Oh, sweet irony (I have a comic drafted about this, hope I can finish it.....)

I know this one is likely an unintentional parallel with EnGirls, but the bit about how Anzu couldn't stop thinking of them (the idols) after she left made me immediately think of Suzu/the Rock Band Club.......

The way Anzu left but couldn't stop thinking about the people she left behind, so she supports them from the shadows without the people she behind knowing? Anzu, with deep care and affection, cheering them on from afar? OOOOOOH ANZU. She may leave her people but she will never stop thinking about them and loving them with all her heart. That's the kind of person that she is.

I love the talk with Tetora. In fact I might prefer it over Hokuto's speech in Yumenosaki. While I love Hokuto's speech, so grand it felt so much like a marriage proposal (swoons), I think Tetora's better connects with Anzu on a personal level, in my opinion. Hokuto's feels like a more resolute and grandiose version of what he said in the first chapter, in a way that, unlike before, puts all the weight on his shoulders and removes it from Anzu (I believe in you, so please believe in me too. I'll protect our memories, and fight to affirm the time I spent with you). Tetora's speech declares trust in Anzu as a producer, but in a way that isn't overwhelming. Tetora doesn't try to reject Anzu's feelings and tries to relate with her instead, and reaffirms the bonds she has with everyone (I hate myself. But my friends support me, make me feel invincible even when I act stupid or become a failure. I want to support you, in the same way so many people have supported me too).

The Ones Reflected in her Eyes - 54 vs 4

Post-Mainstream Megasphere release, a lot of people on the JP side were complaining at how ridiculous it was that the finale was a 54 idols vs 4 from MDU. they said it was a weak cop-out, that it made Anzu look indecisive, and was extremely unfair. I think they explained that pretty well within the story (MDU didn't think much of it themselves and was still confident in their victory, Anzu had promoted the ES idols via "@nazonofan_X", the viewers of DD were looking for an underdog story, there was no actual rule about how many idols Anzu could choose) but like I said before, that's a matter of taking the story as it is vs noticing conflicting information and feeling dissatisfied by it.

Objectively speaking, it's because there's no way the writers would make Anzu choose who she thinks would be the best idols to represent ES for the final event. That would involve putting a real solid opinion on her person lol. Plus they can't have Anzu's views misalign with the players, who might have their own ideas on who the best idols are LOL

It's not like I disagree that Anzu would choose all 54 idols. That ALL 54 IDOLS are the ones she can imagine in that grand stage for the finale. That as an audience, that's who she imagines/wished to see on stage. That's very in character for her. She admires all of the idols, and thinks they all deserve a chance to shine for the finale.

The development of Anzu going "I can't choose" (unsure, lost all confidence) to "I can't choose" (with conviction and intention) was pretty powerful. I like how MDU and NiceP said that a production with 54 idols in a single performance is proof how trusted Anzu is as a producer, because choreographing, planning and organizing a performance of that scale would require a lot of skill from both the producer and idols.

The outcome of Anzu choosing all 54 idols to perform in the finale doesn't feel wrong. It's mostly the framing of it that feels incorrect/inadequate. She can't choose, so she won't—I just wished there was a bit more too it than just her wanting to showcase all the idols (influenced by her time making the promo videos). Like wanting to stick it up to NiceP and breaking free from his rules or something like that. I would say that they should frame it as something more rebellious, for example by making it so that there was a member limit placed or something (???), but their finale already went up and beyond NiceP's expectation so readers might already consider it an unorthodox and rebellious strategy as is. More rebellion from her to match the rebellion of the idols. You're telling me she partook in two rebellions, and there was a third(?) one and she wasn't a part of it?? My rebellious girl??? (It was for her, instead of being a participant)

If you already consider Anzu deciding to bring in every ES idol on stage in the finale against MDU as her rebellion, then the previous point could be moot. Anzu's never the one to take charge in rebellions in the same way as Yako or Trickstar anyways. She has always played a subtle supporting role. Still, if the story framed ES ALL STARS as her rebellion or rejection of NiceP's system, that would have been awesome. Instead, it feels like an outcome of her overflowing love for the idols—sweet and heartwarming, but it doesn't feel like it was written with Anzu's character and history in mind.

Also like, did the writers not remember that Anzu went freelance/independent? This actually crossed my mind as soon as I read the first batch of story chapters bc I was reading my old tweets and remembered that NiceP addresses Anzu as if she was part of the P-Association, when in the timeline Anzu has already went freelance but is still contracted with ES. If NiceP wanted Anzu to produce MDU so badly, why not just hire her normally lol. JK I'm not stupid, I know ES has a monopoly on the Japan Idol market and NiceP would need to put MDU in ES to be able to successfully promote them there, and bag Anzu at the same time. I just think it's weird they seemingly forgot. If they retcon that Anzu has been primarily working in the Trickstudio (to the point of envy from the other units) I'm gonna be so mad.

Final Thoughts

I'm not the smartest person, not really the analyst type. I definitely took the story for its word when I was reading the story, and it didn't immediately click in my head what I thought was wrong until I saw other people's tweets and went out of my way to reread the story. I have a very Anzu-centric lens on while reading. and had lots of biases and expectations as a fan of Anzu who knew her lore from EnGirls and the EnStars novel. My interpretations could very well be incorrect, it wouldn't be the first time it's happened. I could very much be wrong about a lot of this, and just simply fussed over things not going the way I wanted.

That's not to say I dislike the story, there was lots of love from it! I'm so easy to please, just glaze Anzu and I'm already cheering. I just wished there were more layers to it, more complexity. More of Anzu's ego at the forefront of her actions. I'm going to choose to believe the people who say that Akira wasn't involved in the latter chapters, they probably just oversaw the writing.

I wrote this so I can get all my feelings out, so I can finally let go and move on to better pastures. Even if I'm wrong or stupidly misanalysed some details or no one else reads it, I'm happy I wrote it.

Because I love Anzu, and nothing could have started without her.

(if someone actually read through the end, say hello to little PlayCharm Anzu for me :)))

Two knocks came through the door. Callie yells when she walks in and is unsure.

“Who is it?” Amongst the commotion, it could be anyone. There were at least two people who were after your head (Erebus and possibly Mairi)- but it wasn’t like you could ignore this person either. Perhaps it was Tsukasa or Lapel. Those two knocked.

“Please excuse me, my lady.”  you let Tsukasa “in” as he peeked through the door.

“Do you know where my room starts and where the hallway ends exactly?” There was no time like prime time (for teasing). He looked at the floor. 

“Well, the door swings inwards, so it depends if you consider the door part of your room or no-”

Nope. Wrong. Bzzt. It was where the flooring tile changed direction, obviously. The door sat along that line while closed. You giggled as he pouted down the flooring in defeat. 

“Hey, Mister, I need to get in this room.” Callie’s ability to be casual with a Duke of all people was pretty amazing. 

Tsukasa excused himself as he cleared space for Callie to move. She sat herself in the chair she absolutely decked out in trinkets and proclaimed, “It is busy today because the branch families have caught wind of the news regarding the legendary scroll you found. Good job, I think you’d be a good celebrity. That’s your job anyways, right? You’re getting famous. Can I be your manager?” There was absolutely no way this girl was as real as the snort you let out- unfortunately, all of that was very real. As you laughed your butt off, Tsukasa leaned against the wall, confused as to why this was so funny. That face was priceless; if only you had a camera to capture it. Man, where was that phone when you needed it? It’s survivable without it, as everybody knew, but it had its use in this type of society too.

You assured Callie that she’d be your manager in any and every world you managed to get famous in, and you quickly changed the subject as to why Tsukasa suddenly appeared at your door.

“We will be holding a short meeting between me, you, Mother, and Father at 5 before we have dinner with the branch family. We will be at the largest round dining table we have, so please familiarize yourself with this chart until then. I apologize that I did not provide this sooner.” Callie took the book from his hand. 

“Which pages is it?” her eyes would tell you it better not be the whole book, sir.

“Just the last 3 are those who will be in session, those in the recorded 6th group. Their children will not be in attendance today.” he watched Callie as she flipped to the 6th family group.

“I now have to see Lapel and get some work done before I get ready for lunch. Please send a message if you need me. If there is nothing urgent, I will be off now.” You waved goodbye to let him know that he was free to go, and with his quaint little bow, he hurried off to his office. You could already feel the dread of the exhaustion that was waiting for you tonight- ever so sexily too, because it would be great if you could plop onto the bed with exhaustion and fall asleep quickly (but today the journey there sounded like a pain in the butt). This was, though, part of the contract you had signed. It was crunch season, damn it. It was that saying where if you’re too good at the job, you get rewarded with more work.

While Callie had the maids heat up the water for your bath as she prepared everything else for it, you started studying the faces to names. Online flashcards would’ve been amazing. But alas, identifying unique features would have to have been enough for a quick study session. If Tsukasa wasn’t planning to save you in the case you messed up, that’d be a warrant for a bad business partner- although nothing was as bad as a man trying to kill you, so perhaps this wasn’t a bad situation.

For a moment, you thought about bringing the book into the shower, but the prospect of accidentally dropping a book about the Suou family was scary enough for you to leave it on the table and give yourself a bit of a break.

“Callie, did you get any more information?” you started soaping your arms as she shampooed your hair.

“Apparently they’re pretty mad it wasn’t even someone who was born into the family who found it- since they’d been looking for years. Some of them blame you, others blame the former Duke and Duchess or the Duke, and most of them blame both of you for their incapabilities. I did hear that in the last decade, nobody’d bothered to seriously look, so that was on them. That’s just a humble maid’s opinion anyways. Oh, close your eyes, I’m about to wash your hair.” She gave you just barely three seconds for you to close your eyes before the water came splashing on. “Here, I’ll wipe your face a little so it won’t feel gross.”

You were lucky she remembered. Perhaps it was your lack of influence, but if you weren’t important, nobody was paying that much attention to you.

“Why did they want to find it so badly in the first place?” you grabbed the lotion as Callie dried your hair. 

“Influence, perhaps. Apparently that thing’s supposed to be a will of the founder of the Suou clan, but that guy didn’t know how to write the Empire’s language, so he wrote in his own language.”

You nodded along Callie’s conjectures mixed with whatever she had heard earlier, trying to connect certain people with things they did over the last couple of decades. Man, the elders of this time were more than greedy. 

Apparently, to their understanding, the cottage you’d found it in was owned by a servant, so they thought there was no possible way it could’ve been there. Nonetheless, it was probably best that you found it, since you weren’t affiliated with anyone other than Tsukasa. Oh, actually, for that, he should bring you to a trending bakery. This was worth at least one sweet treat.

Despite the fact that you were wearing the Duchess’s old dress, it was still fashionable. Perhaps it was nostalgia, but the trends did have a habit of coming back around every so often. The new trend had its own way of being new, so it was a bit differentiable, but it was definitely still the same style. Oh, that was smart. They wanted to assert your position within the Duchy by giving you the former Duchess’s clothes, even though they could easily order new ones for you. The frills certainly made it look and feel expensive, so someone from a small house like you certainly would never have been able to afford it. It would’ve been nice to know the history though; where did she wear this to? Maybe someone would’ve remembered.

While you waited for Tsukasa to come pick you up, since he hadn’t told you the location of the meeting, you continued to study the chart. Because it was difficult to remember people solely by faces and you wanted to know more, Callie went to get one of the butlers to stop by and share more information. 

As you made notes on the most important people, there were two knocks. 

“Tsukasa, is that you?” you looked towards the door, and Callie opened it. She had probably already known, if she opened the door so willingly. So desperate for that break, huh. You didn’t get a break today… one task for you wouldn’t hurt, would it?

“Callie, before I get back tonight, could you find me some reference material on how to be a great celebrity? After all, you’re my manager, right?” This grin couldn’t be contained.

Callie had to stop herself from scoffing. “Of course, my lady. I will be the best manager in the world, just for you, just for you. Oh, to be both a manager and maid at the salary of one job! What to do…” That hand to her forehead might have given her an A+ in theater class, or something. Did they teach that as part of maid training these days? 

“Thank you, dearest Callie. I appreciate you so much,” you turned to face Tsukasa instead and took his arm. What was up with that dopey smile of his?

“What’s so funny?” you grinned up at him. 

He stared at you for at least 1.5 seconds. “Don’t change your humor, my lady.” He looked away. Was that a blush?

As tempted as you were to ask where he was taking you, you’d taken this route before, and perhaps it would have been rude to ask since you’d walked this path so many times. Through the Duchess’s garden was the little gazebo, this time with no snacks. 

“Oh-ho, do you like this dress? It looks splendid on you, dear.” the former Duchess nodded in satisfaction. You tell her that you do, but that was not the time to share what you liked about it in detail. 

The former Duchess brought her fan up to her face, “I wore it to my debut.” This style was fashionable both around that time and now, but to be given her debut dress was insane. Luckily, Tsukasa changed the subject after he checked his watch. 

“We have 15 minutes before we have to get to the dining table, so we’ll make this quick,” he whispered. You nodded, although it was strange you were the only one he told. Did his parents already know?

“I will start the meeting,” the former Duke cleared his throat before speaking. “At this meeting, we will be discussing the translation, our presentation, and our actions moving forward regarding the scroll. Based on our founder’s” he turned to you, omitting his name to not confuse you. “notes, he asks us to remember to work hard, keep our unique culture, and stick together even as we grow apart. He understood that the clan may grow in size, and that naturally, many will move away.” 

You nodded and turned to Tsukasa. “Sounds like him. He wasn’t rich until the Emperor gave him his title, so that type of mindset makes sense.” You could almost hear Callie say, “So privileged…” with her signature deadpan stare and almost giggled. Damn, Callie.

“Our family, especially our branch families, have been divided more than ever. With this dinner, we will prioritize resolving concerns and organizing future gatherings amongst the next of the house, with creating shared education systems for the next generation. Larger projects will be discussed at a later date.” Tsukasa nodded. “We have not translated the entire document, as some characters had faded or were unable to be identified. We will be able to show the scroll at dinner tonight. Any questions so far?” Everyone shook their heads.

“As for the dinner tonight, we will serve traditional food. We have prepared gyoza and karaage with rice and udon soup.” Tsukasa cut him off, “Is it actually true those were the founder’s favorite?” “We can’t ask questions to dead people, son. Are there any other burning questions while we’re interrupted?” We all shook our heads, although you wondered if it’d taste the same, since the ingredients probably didn’t grow in the Empire. It was good that they knew what those dishes were. The Empire’s food was a little plain, so Japanese food was a good change of pace. It would do some good to have foreign travelers open some restaurants. Heck, you’d hire one. That’d be something for Callie, though. After all, she was your manager now (all on her own accord).

“The itinerary for tonight with the group is as follows: greetings, going over the scroll, showing the scroll, introducing my dear daughter in law, future plans, and then the food will be served. I believe this to be straightforward- are there any questions?”

Tsukasa raised his hand, but he was the only one with a question. “Will the greetings be standing or seated? I believe that standing greetings where we can mix around and have informal conversations should be encouraged. As for the lady here, she can stick with me since she doesn’t have any connections with the branch families.”

The former Duke took a moment to think, “The two of you can actually stay seated. I understand that as the Duke and Duchess, you have to personally maintain good connections, but today is her debut, so you are free to do so afterwards. Any other questions?”

“Am I to give any sort of speech when I am introduced?” like a schoolgirl, your hand shot up. The former Duke did not hold back his smile.

“No, Tsukasa will handle this for you. You’re free to smile and wave and introduce yourself if you like, though. Anything else?” 

You almost said no, but at the end of the day, all you wanted was to go back to sleep- and you needed to know when that could be. 

“Are there allotted timeslots for the event?” The former Duke nodded. “These are some good questions. Our events typically end at 11PM, so it will be a few hours at most. We might be done before 11, but typically our events have free social hours until 11 if we finish early, so you might be popular. Please help entertain our guests tonight. Everyone but the next gen leaders will be in attendance tomorrow, so you’ll be able to rest up in a couple of days. Anything else?” Everyone shook their heads after looking around for more shot-up hands.

“Alright, this meeting is adjourned. I’m hungry. Let us go to the dining hall. We must be the first so we can greet our guests.” 

You took the arm Tsukasa always offered as the four of you made your way to the dining hall. Despite being someone who lived in the estate, you’d never been to that room before; the butler never included it in his tour of the place. 

The room was incredibly ornate, even the outside of the doors. Elaborate carvings of man wearing a kimono wielding a traditional sword of the Empire were painted with vivid colors- it stood out among the rest of the doors, which matched the rest of the building. Even as you entered, the chair farthest from the door was the only chair with armrests and had a particularly tall backrest- probably for the Duke. Much like the entire room, almost everything was carved and made of wood.

** check accuracy?

Before you had time to ask any questions, Tsukasa took the big chair, saving the seat next to him for you and the other for his father, and his mother sat at the chair next to her husband. 

“It’s a formal event, so no words more than necessary will be said until we are dismissed.” Tsukasa whispered, and you nodded. 

Just minutes after the doors were left open, members of the branch family entered through droves. It would’ve been nice if they’d identified themselves as they piled in, but of course it was expected that the main family familiarize themselves with the branch families. They each knew where their seat was apparently, but the reasons for how and why were questions for later.

“Thank you to everyone for gathering for today’s meeting. We have prepared traditional food befitting our family for tonight. After these announcements, we will happily dine. Now, I will have Tsukasa head our meeting as the current Duke of Suou.” the former Duke started off the meeting. It was true that Tsukasa had only become the Duke less than two years ago.

Tsukasa cleared his throat. “Yes, thank you, Father. Thank you for starting off the meeting. Now…” Because you’d already heard the agenda of the meeting from before, there was nothing much to pay attention to- not that Tsukasa was a bad speaker- but you already knew all the information of what he was about to say. 

Instead, you focused on the nobles and what they were doing. Count Bryant was in attendance- he’d married into the family. His eyes darted around the room much like yours, but his expression when he looked to his left, where you were, gave away his tense jaw. 

“Please, let me hear your questions and concerns after we finish this delicious meal. Cheers!” Tsukasa brought up his glass, and so did everyone else. Zombie's smiles filled the room- many participated simply because of the circumstances while believing otherwise. 

As for the rest of the dinner, which was surprisingly relaxed, many spoke to those next to them, forming small groups of mostly three but sometimes four or five. The meal was brought in a bento style with soup on the side.

“Crispy, isn't it? It's been my favorite ever since.” that was very Tsukasa-like. 

“Since when?” 

“Uh, since I can remember. But, uhm, you won't be able to find better gyoza anywhere else! It's a family recipe. We make them extra crispy.” 

Actually, you'd tasted better, but that wasn't in the Empire, nor was it anywhere near. So perhaps he was right in a practical aspect, because realistically you'd become a traveler if you even attempted to leave. 

“I'll be sure to remember that,” you assured him as you took another bite of the gyoza. 

“Oh, you should try the soup. The noodles are thick and chewy. I used to spend a lot of time eating them as a kid.” That one was picturable. 

“Wouldn't the soup have gotten soaked up already?” You giggled. 

“Not that slow… mostly.” His pout was undeniably adorable. 

Despite the big room and multiple conversations, you didn't have to put up a sound bubble to feel like it. Overall, for the ingredients that were available in the Empire, the food was quite good. Perhaps the worst part of it was the rice being not as sticky as you'd like though, but that was the best that the local rice could do.

Despite your little banter with Tsukasa, you could still feel the intermittent stares from the others at the table- you were being observed. But being the obedient doll wouldn't cut it; you already had enough on your plate with both Erebus and Mairi. It was only appropriate to treat them as the threat they were: insignificant to your current troubles. Thus, dinner passed as quickly as it could.

“Tsukasa! I was unable to attend your ascent to dukedom, I’m so proud of you, though.” Countess Messer met you and Tsukasa at the door as the entire family was dismissed.

“Yes, thank you Aunt Annelie,” he stopped walking to greet her. Since you were beside him but were not addressed, there wasn’t much more to do than wave.

“Are you busy? Make sure you’re taking care of yourself- especially with your fiancee; it’s quite cumbersome to arrange her bridal lessons and negotiate with her family. I hope you’ve picked well.” She did not even bother to look at you directly.

The fingers you set around his arm felt his muscles tighten as he listened to her words. 

“I’m doing well, thank you for your concern.” Tsukasa’s smile had never been more fake. “Even in our busy schedules, I enjoy every second we spend together. I’m grateful to be able to spend time with my wonderful fiancee every single day.” 

Marquess Schultz, who had married into the family, also congratulated Tsukasa- once again framing doubt in you ask concern for Tsukasa. Perhaps Countess Messer and Marquess Schultz were part of a coordinated effort. 

“Thank you, Marquess Schultz. I look forward to the continuation of my relationship,” Tsukasa brought you in closer. He was very warm.

As you and Tsukasa gathered around the branch families, and each time they inquired about you rather than anything to you, Tsukasa came up with a new way to praise you. By the way his arm tightened as you held it, you could tell his patience was running out.

Tsukasa cleared his throat, “Everyone, I have one last announcement.” you used a spell to boost his voice. That serious look on his face was reserved for when he was absolutely serious about something. “We will be holding a ball in one week’s time to celebrate my dearest fiancee.” Low whispers filled the room. “I hope you all attend. Dismissed.”

WORD COUNT | 3520 words

NOTES FROM QIAN | hi this series is extremely self indulgent. if you would like to join the taglist, please send me an ask [ tags in the reblogs ]. ALSO I ORIGINALLY WANTED TO HAVE CH 9 END WAAAAY AFTER THIS BUT IT ENDED UP BEING SO LONG I SPLIT IT INTO CH 9 AND 10. since the next part of the chapter has a different focus anyway, it's fine

“But I’ll be home in 10 minutes.” Yes, you wouldn’t start the show without him. How could you, to a man treated so poorly at work? “I think you’re doing really well at work, Mugi.” It’s something you say often, but you mean it every time. After all, there were few who could do what he did at work.

You could feel his smile through the phone, even if you couldn’t see it.

“I think you’re really awesome too. There’s no one else I’d be prouder of. Oh, I’m almost home. Do we have ice cream today or popcorn?” 

Even though your answer of “ice cream” wasn’t quite telling of what you were experiencing, he made no haste in bringing a kiss to your cheek with the huffs from when he ran all the way home.

“Tsukasa.” he turned to face you as he led the way to the main drawing room. “Do you know how to read this?” Perhaps he’d know; after all, maybe it was information shared with the main family or something. 

He shook his head. 

“I don’t know how to read it, but perhaps my grandfather did. He didn’t find it important to teach my father and I. Many of our relatives hoped it existed and that they’d find it and possibly decode it. They’d gain a significant amount of influence.” He quickened his gait. It was closer to a run than a walk, but he was in his own world, at this point. 

Would it be too much to ask why it was so significant?

“We’ll be able to explain it to you in a moment, my lady. Please, have a seat,” he opened the door for you and you took a seat (the one next to yours). 

The silence spoke years, but the clock’s hand only moved 5 times. Tsukasa did nothing but stare at the scroll; he examined its condition, tried to copy the strokes (not top to bottom but left to right), and created notes on possible origins of the creation of the physical scroll. He sure was busy. Probably the most important thing was what it said, but you were no expert on what they valued in a scroll. 

It was apparent that he’d forgotten about you in the moment- but that could be teasing material. You let that be; after all, this was something he probably had been waiting for his entire life. It would be cruel to deprive him of it.

 His mother’s footsteps gave away her arrival before the doors even opened, and his father quickly followed. They took a seat at the couch across from you, their grim expressions explaining the lack of greetings. 

“That old fool.” That was all his father had to say. 

“A disgrace, I say. I wish we could bring him out of the grave, unable to speak, and simply let him torment in his own incompetency.” Tsukasa’s rage was nothing short of amusing, despite the situation being apparently dire. 

His mother did not even look at them properly in exasperation. “The dead don’t think. Let bygones be bygones.” They shut up. 

This might have been a stupid question but, “Maybe there were records from when the previous generations learned the language?” 

Ah, fuck.

Tsukasa’s shock (coupled with a bit of frustration) subsided quickly upon facing you; after all, it would be unbecoming of a fiance to have the temper of boiling water. He sat in silence, staring down at his very own shoes. Then, at the old decorations by the windows, the books on the table in front of you.

With a deep breath, he declared, “I will have Lapel identify areas within the estate for further investigation. If there are no further topics of discussion, this meeting will be adjourned. I will see you again at the dinner table.” 

His parents nodded, without smiles but not without a more relaxed expression. Perhaps they were thinking about how things were going to be okay. You thought perhaps they were going to talk about the relatives and what they had to do with this, but maybe they all already knew. Still, being left out when you were a key contributor was nothing short of bitter. 

Tsukasa took your hand and brought it to his lips. 

“I apologize, my lady. I should have acknowledged your great contributions.” Oh, so he was aware. As much as your pettiness surged, it was only etiquette that you displayed humility.

It was then that Lapel, with burning legs and huffing breaths, appeared and informed Tsukasa of an emergency, to which he hastily greeted you goodbye and outran his poor butler to his very own office. Lapel, the butler with the grace of a God, what would house  Suou do without you?

By then, you’d begun to wonder where Callie went. Last you’d seen her was the garden, and that was quite a bit ago. She might have been able to cure your imminent boredom- without modern devices, everything surely was slow. Perhaps you’d take up crochet or painting as a hobby. Callie would have to help with that; youtube tutorials weren’t available anymore unfortunately. 

In any case, because Callie had been so excited for a break, you decided to take your time looking for her. Despite it being a real, in-use building, the estate still looked partly like  one of those rich people's house museums. Maybe this would ruin the museums if you ever went back (with a big emphasis on if). 

Despite literally everything being fancy, with doors having intricate carvings and the ceilings having detailed murals, there wasn’t much notable about it- unless you were trying to do some art analysis at every corner, it was all only slightly different (in an amusing way). It might have been the slow pace of life, but maybe this was the origin of scrolling.

“Boo!” 

The former duchess was NOT scary. Was this the scaring meta amongst noble ladies these days? Surely it only worked under appropriate lighting and sound accompaniments. 

“Good afternoon, Duchess.” The slight bow was enough in an information setting.

The former Duchess’s smile hinted at her mischievous nature. “Dear, dear, don't be afraid to call me ‘Mother’.”

Is she okay? You’d been there for less than a month- but it wasn’t worth fighting over what you called her. Perhaps it was Erebus’s lack of action, but you were left with literally nothing to do. It wasn’t improbable that he’d be planning something, but without his sorcerer powers, what could he possibly do? It wasn’t like he was going to invade another duchy, right? That would be war. He surely wouldn’t be that crazy…

The laugh did not hide its nervous nature, “All right then, mother.” 

The Duchess shuffled around. Was she lonely? “I think it would be best to be comfortable in a situation like this,” she winked. “Shall we go to my garden?” 

Your shoes clicked through the garden tiles without a direction and the only reason being the Duchess’s whims. For a moment you thought you might find Callie, but it was likely she had run off into town to read at a nice cafe. Hobbies truly don’t change that much over time. 

The Duchess already had the gazebo set with tea and pastries, both of which smelled delicious. When Tsukasa arrived and sat at the seat next to you, it was almost like suddenly a seat appeared, even though it would only be logical that it was there the whole time; his cup had been set from the start. 

Did Tsukasa call this meeting? This wasn’t a formal meeting… right? Was it the Duchess that organized this? It was such a short amount of time too-

By the time you noticed Tsukasa’s worried stare, you worried it might have been forever since that started. 

“What is it?” You looked at both of them.

Somehow, it looked like Tsukasa had gotten angry at the thought of whatever he was about to say, and the Duchess patted his head as if he was a young boy and sat obediently in his chair. 

“Dear, we have been conducting an investigation on Erebus Drakos-” 

Tsukasa interrupted her in a panic. “I deeply apologize if we infringed upon your privacy. Erebus is just so suspicious, being the way he is, and I’m sorry we sent troops to your estate-” 

She shut him up fast. “Tsukasa, what did you learn in speech class? Please find your composure before you speak.” He could only mutter a “Yes, mother…” and continued on listening.

“As I was saying, we did an investigation on Erebus Drakos. As it was necessary in our operation, we also had to investigate your house. Our men do efficient work and do not pry into unnecessary areas.” The best you could do was nod. 

“House Drakos seems to be preparing for war, however the progress seems quite slow. Their recruitment is quite gradual, and they’re not stockpiling on large amounts of supplies at once. One theory would be a lack of budget, which would only be possible if it was only out of Erebus’s money, rather than Duke Drakos’s. In any case, we’d suggest staying inside of the estate for now, and you can ask Tsukasa here to do all of your errands. Or if you’d prefer, Lapel can find someone available to do so. We would suggest that both you and your maid stay within the estate though, as we will be keeping our security high while Drakos shows signs of hostility.” What could you do against a well-spoken woman like that? If Tsukasa had been the one with the news, who knows what he would've ended up saying- just by his demeanor today. He probably would have done much better with others… you hoped. (After all, he was the Duke of the biggest, richest Dukedom in the entire empire.) 

The Duchess sighed. “You’re both free to stay here and finish your tea and cookies, but Lapel explicitly said he wanted some time for himself today, so I’d suggest you two go on a little scavenger hunt. After all, you didn’t find the rings yet, am I correct?” 

You looked at Tsukasa. Perhaps that’d cheer him up. After all, you were confined to this place anyways, and you were bored, so perhaps this would be a good opportunity. After all, the Duchess seemed to imply that Tsukasa had a moment to spare.

You could tell he forced a “Let us go, my lady. Where is it you wanted to search next?” through whatever guilt or nervousness he had been displaying earlier. Perhaps it was related to the meeting, but he’d already apologized. Perhaps it was about the search of your estate, but really, there was nothing there that was really yours; you didn’t grow up there, after all. Well, he didn’t know that, but that was another box of worms you didn’t have any business bringing up now. 

As the two of you left the room and made your way to the library, which was your second best guess (since Cerelia did love books), you asked one of the butlers to find and inform Callie that she also had to stay inside of the estate. It was getting late in the day, so you figured she'd be back to grab something from the kitchen. If the food was free, the food was free (meaning she’d rush back to get it). 

“Kabal?” his grey, translucent, body mixed strangely with the metal of the library’s candleholders- it became quite a way off from bright gold. 

Perhaps his excitement kept his body bouncing through the air, even if Tsukasa stared him down intensely. The duke truly was greedy.

The two of you followed Kabal throughout the library, checking suspicious books and bookcases along the way. If a book caught your eye, Tsukasa climbed the ladder and carried it around the whole way for you. Was it fair he was holding all of these books you wanted? No, you could carry them yourself. But perhaps Tsukasa would get restless had he not had a task to do (which, luckily, he did all on his own.) For goodness sake, if he’d started fighting with Kabal, who you’d have to remind him was a BLOB who gravitated towards metals, could you ever think of him as a logical duke ever again? 

Towards the inner workings of the library, Kabal, who hadn’t stopped the entire time, circled a bookshelf, ending up at a certain red book. The roses were red camellias- it was the flower of House Suou. No title.

“Tsukasa, do you know about this book?” He dodged the pile of books in his arms to look at it and shook his head. 

Just as you were about to ask him to put down the books he was carrying, he set them aside himself and slid the book out of the bookshelf. You situated yourself next to him to inspect it- the pages were painted on. It was believable at a distance, but the paint style was clear up close. 

The two of you looked at each other. 

“Secret door?” the two of you said together. 

By that time, Kabal had situated himself into the bookshelf, but in order for Tsukasa to reach in and find any sort of mechanism to open the door, he needed to be out. 

“Kabal, come beside me.” You explained what was going on, just for Kabal’s sake.

“I’ll check inside. Please wait here, my lady.” His kiss lingered on your hand as he placed his hand inside the bookshelf’s empty residence. Perhaps he was immersing himself in this role- perhaps he even enjoyed it. 

 Tsukasa looked back just to give you a bit of a pout- what was his problem? Before you could ask, his upper body fell forward as the bookshelf started rotating. You pulled him back towards you as the bookshelf halted to a 90 degree rotation- his marvel with the door overcame his thoughts of gratitude.  

Perhaps for someone who hadn’t seen a rotating door before, you’d excuse Tsukasa’s astonishment. After all, who hadn’t had that moment upon seeing a door so strange for the first time?

Your body had no choice but to sneeze out the dust from a room which probably hadn’t been opened for decades. Thankfully, Tsukasa had brought a lantern, so at least it wasn’t likely that dust caught fire (which would’ve been in the newspaper the next day), especially for a room that had absolutely no windows. Despite the abhorrent amount of dust, the room was relatively well-kept; besides dust, there were no other signs of an unkept room. Although not unkept, it was certainly strikingly incomplete; the bookshelves were largely empty, and there was no other storage aside from a desk with 4 drawers (2 on each side). 

Kabal found his comfy resting spot by one of the drawers as Tsukasa kept close and coughed quite a bit by your side. So much for an assistant; perhaps you should get Kabal a treat for all his time and effort since your red-haired partner largely just stood by (for right now). As you opened the first drawer, you picked up one of the two boxes, since they were the only things in that drawer. 

“Lamp boy, can you open the second one?” oh, lamp boy was a good one. 

“Oh, uh, of course,” he put all he held in his hands onto the table and grabbed the other box. “Would you like to open them together?” 

Honestly, it could be the ring, but maybe it wasn’t. In any case, his excitement shone through his eagerness, and perhaps it’d be cruel to deny him the possibility of his apparent theory of having found the rings. 

“3.. 2… 1…” the two of you looked at each other as you opened the boxes. 

From the lamp’s light, the gems’ small fractures created crystallized patterns in front of each of you as both you and the took inspected the rings. A beautiful sea blue surrounded the wall in front of you, creating the illusion of an underwater bridge. However, on the other side of the room, a deep red filled with the same pattern kept Tsukasa in awe. In any time period, to be able to get a gem cut like that would've been like striking 100 gold mines at once- even then and even now.

Through the red and blue combining to purple, you noticed Tsukasa approach you eagerly.

“My lady, shall we wear these rings? After all, we were the ones who found them, and it would be a waste not to. We can show them off at Marquess de Rass's yearly charity ball and surprise everyone by combining these colors! Oh, they'd be a wonderful engagement anno-” he cut himself off mid-sentence. Facing away from you to badly conceal a blush, he cleared his throat. “Anyways, shall we go see Mother?” 

Using your amusing privilege to tease such a Duke, you took his arm while wearing the ring you'd found, and walked towards the Duchess's garden. Watching Tsukasa try to close the door, despite the difficulty of being short an arm, was quite enough entertainment for the hour.

“Mother?” Tsukasa called, as he opened the door, keeping his arm up for you. 

“Tsukasa? Come in,” she didn’t get up from her chair; well, she was the former duchess of Suou, of course she could do just about anything. Beside her sat her husband, who had his eyes buried in a dark green book- from this distance, you couldn’t see the title (but it was apparent that the hardcover was highly decorated with gold). 

The two of you sit on the couch across them. Tsukasa, with the vigor of a pirate having struck gold, briefed them on the events that had occurred, somehow forgetting Kabal’s name (but it was far too funny to hear him describe Kabal in terms like “floating slime” and “familiar with metal-finding nostrils” that all you could do was hold back your laughter) Sorry, Kabal. 

Even before he had mentioned the rings, she had noticed the two of you wearing them and could not confine her smile within her emotions. Despite her observation, she let Tsukasa go on and on about his recollection of the events, and by the end of it, she gives you her sincerest congratulations. Her husband, on the other hand, gave his son a thumbs up after his story and went back to his book, A Hiker’s Guide to the East Bastion Mountain Range. 

“Oh, yes, it’s about dinner time. How about we all have dinner together today? It would be wonderful to spend more time as a family.” Tsukasa practically bounced as he agreed, and the former duke, still buried in his book, simply stood up and walked with us the dining room as the former duchess asked a maid to run to the kitchen and prepare a “specialty dinner”. She didn’t provide any explanation for it- she simply giggled and patted me on the shoulder, saying, “You’ll see. It’s quite delicious.”  You nodded along with that. Well, as long as the food was delicious, there would be no problem. 

Having sat next to him in the dining room, it would’ve been impossible to ignore the tips of his lips pointing towards the sky- was it the food, or what had just happened? Maybe it was both. 

Even as the food arrived, the former duke kept reading his book, only looking up to thank the maid who brought the food to the table.

Amongst the confusion, Tsukasa’s excited descriptions fell short from your ears. Yes, you knew what dumplings were. Dumplings didn’t exist in the empire- unless someone from your world brought them over. 

WORD COUNT | 3214 words

NOTES FROM QIAN | hi this series is extremely self indulgent. if you would like to join the taglist, please send me an ask [ tags in the reblogs ]

He cups your cheeks and presses his forehead to yours- gives you a hug, kisses all over your neck. He knows you need just a bit of a distraction, even for a moment, and in your pain, he can't help but think a bit of affection would do just the trick. In every moment, he 100% believes whatever you're stressed about isn't insurmountable in the slightest- after all, it's you. (and he believes in you the most)

Like every good boyfriend, there's not one thing he believes is physically better for you than (other than affection)- water (and perhaps food). He has you sit down and prepares you both a drink and a small meal- something hearty and quick, as to not keep you waiting for too long. Even if you protest in the urgency of the task, he asks you to stay- a few minutes wouldn't hurt, right? (And he misses you)

One thing Nazuna loves doing is sitting beside (or near) you while you prepare for whatever it is that is stressing you out- at opportune times, he'll steal a kiss here and there, keep track of your water, and perhaps this would be self-indulgent of him, because he's a little greedy when it comes to you, but he can't help but catch an extra glimpse at you just a little bit while you work. Whenever you catch him, he just goes into the hug and compliments you over and over again until it feels unnecessary and perhaps your heart is just a little bit lighter from the laughter.

WORD COUNT | 348 words

You stare at the flowers. Some are from the area, some are from the edges of the Empire, and some you have absolutely no idea what they were or where they were from. Its distractive properties were quite alluring, and in a world without much entertainment, this was worth maybe a few slightly funny videos. 

“Are these flowers to your liking, my lady?” Ah, it was Tsukasa’s hand holding the purple flowers you were looking at. 

“Oh, yes, they are. Hydrangeas are pretty,” you looked up at him. “Why, are you planning to change it?”

He looked at the flowers and to you again. “Perhaps. It could be more grand.” 

“It’s plenty grand as is.” This was true, objectively. It was watered and trimmed well in pretty shapes as well, surrounding a little gazebo- and in grand Suou fashion, the architecture matched that of the rest of the estate. 

“Is there anything you would like, though?” He looks to you for guidance. He seemed to know a lot about flowers; why was he asking you? Nonetheless, he probably wasn’t going to stop unless you gave him some semblance of an answer. 

Really, nothing at all was missing… there were clear walkways, places to sit, and even a little lake and bridge. 

“Oh, maybe a greenhouse of sorts? I know Callie likes to garden sometimes…” It was just an idea, and perhaps Callie would like that. She grew a garden back in the estate consisting of maybe 4 tomato vines in the back near her quarters- she paid a small fee to the guards who worked the area to keep it a secret. 

Callie looked at you like you were a genius. Her eyes shone unusually, almost like she was saying this is a business opportunity. Was this going to be Callie’s farmer era? She really thought about it. Tomatoes sold well these days, and anything attached to the Suou name sold exceptionally well. Well, she’d need a business permit, so maybe Tsukasa would allow it. Perhaps. (If you really asked, he probably would.)

Had you not turned around, you wouldn’t have known about Tsukasa’s little excited expression. He really thought he wasn’t being obvious, but his glittering eyes and held-back smile said it all.

“Ah, right, my mother is looking for you. Shall we go? Or do you need some more time in the garden?” There were few times Tsukasa could be seen in such an awkward manner. It was quite amusing.

“It’s alright. Is Callie to be in attendance?” you asked. She’d looked like she wanted quite a lot of free time lately, and this would be a good opportunity to let her be and do her usual Callie activities (maybe she would be planning her farm now). 

She looked at him the way she looked at you- not with care, but with I want time off. I have places to be and things to do. Please let me go. 150% reasonable.

“No, my mother wants it to be just us. Shall I walk you there?” he extended his hand, which you took and waved Callie goodbye. She secretly gave you a thumbs up- she was very happy. (and a happy Callie was a Callie in for a good time)

The seats in the Duchess’s parlor were so soft you almost didn’t hear her say “Since we have a new lady in the house, I’ll be opening up our annual treasure hunt again!” 

Tsukasa made a face at her. “Mother, is it really an annual hunt if you’ve had it paused for the last decade?” he asked, clearly being a little opposed to the prospect. He could do a lot of things, but the exasperation in his voice was a clear indicator that finding this treasure wasn't one of those things

“Well, you’re certainly welcome to try, Tsukasa. You two can even work together- it’d be a wonderful opportunity to work together as well.” She smiled at the two of you, and with pretty much zero hesitation in her decision, there was hardly anything in the entire world that could change her mind.

“Are we allowed to know what the treasure is? Or are there any hints?” it felt like the conversation was at a bit of a stalemate while the Duchess proceeded to make fun of her son (in all good faith). 

She proceeded to tell you all about this treasure hunt, just like she had done for her own child, his cousins, and others of the family who had decided to partake in this challenge. Much to your surprise, this tradition started shortly after the Duke and Duchess had gotten married. 

The prize was a pair of wedding rings- and when you asked whose it was, because both her and her husband still wear their rings, her smile was the biggest you had ever seen. Granted, you’d only been there for only a few days, but she didn’t say anything but “I’m glad my son’s wife is as intelligent as she is,” to which you thanked her awkwardly. 

She then quickly continued on with the story, telling the tale of her dearest friend, Cerelia, and her lover Edgar. Cerelia, a former maid from the Duchess’s family, had been recently employed by the royal family when she met Edgar, a diplomat from the Kingdom of Veba, a small country in the South. They quickly fell in love during his stay at the palace, often sneaking out into town in the evenings and exchanging glances during the day. Their difference in status tried to keep them apart, but sometimes, in the busyness of the festival atmosphere, many (including them) didn’t care to keep up with it.

Of course, Edgar’s escorts did not expect a young lady, especially a maid, to attempt to sneak into the return party- and despite Edgar’s pleas, he was not allowed to take her with him, especially since Cerelia worked for the royal palace. She sobbed as she was taken back to her work station; her responsibility did not escape her. 

She held onto the ring they had bought during his time there, keeping it close and hidden beneath her long sleeves. They were not marriage rings, but rather promise rings, as Edgar had been expected to marry someone he loathed in Veba and planned to continue resisting this marriage with all his might. She expected to wait for weeks until she could hear word from him again, since Veba was quite far and sending mail on the way was difficult. 

Just two weeks after Edgar had left, rumors had risen about the return party amongst the guards. Some were being sent out to investigate the situation- they had encountered bandits and were in quite a pickle. She prayed that Edgar was safe, but every day, she sneaked out early and listened in on the knights’ gossip. She even made friends with some of them, talking to them about what she knew about the return party. She was an excellent storyteller, often even sending letters to her friends, including the Duchess, and gained the sympathy of many. 

Before the news could reach Cerelia, Edgar had been killed by the bandits. After they were defeated by the investigation team, one of them, who had been befriended by Cerelia, took Edgar’s ring and brought it back to her with the news. There would be a new diplomat after that, but Cerelia distanced herself ever since. 

As she grieved, she sent the Duchess a letter shortly after she had gotten married. Being a maid of another house, she could not attend the celebration, but in the kindness of her soul, she mailed the rings to the Suou estate and asked the Duchess to bury the rings and make a fun game out of it. She hoped a young couple would find the rings and have the happiness she lost. 

After telling such a story, being the yapper she is, the Duchess told all she knew about Cerelia. Perhaps that was her way of keeping the memories alive, but you now knew far too many details. In short, Cerelia was an avid reader of romance novels and loved gardening, as her brother was a gardener at the Duchess’s former estate. 

Cutting herself short from sharing all the details she could ever know, the Duchess shooed the two of you out so quickly you almost had no memory of even how you got out. 

“Mother… why are you so abrupt?” You’d never seen Tsukasa so defeated. Was that the hidden power of mothers? 

The huff he let out wouldn’t reach the Duchess anytime soon. As you led yourself into his view, he let go of his pout and offered his hand. 

“Where shall we go, my lady?” he asked as you took his hand. You’d never officially accepted the Duchess’s invite to the treasure hunt, although maybe the inquiry about it was enough. (She’d shut the doors before you could express however much resolve you had for this challenge.) 

“Are you busy?” you wondered if he was going to accompany you all day. It wouldn’t be bad, per se, but how was a Duke this free? Did he not have meetings and guests and paperwork to do? What about conversing with the workers, visiting the towns, making business deals… is that not what Dukes did? It was a shame you had a bit of a hard time remembering the “noble training” the previous owner of your body had to go through. 

A blush formed on his face. He seemed to not know he was blushing, but he certainly was aware of his own fluster, struggling to come up with any sort of answer. 

“It’s. a… downtide period. Yes, it’s not busy around this time of year so I’m free to escort you today…” He wasn’t looking at you. 

For whoever didn’t know the Duke of Suou could be like this, which was just about everyone in high society, you could almost feel bad for them. To not be able to see the Duke in such an adorable state- maybe some wouldn’t like it, but this is truly the scene of the century. Even after your fake marriage, there couldn’t possibly be a replica. 

A giggle couldn’t help but escape your lips as you replied with, “Alright, then, dear.” You looked straight at his blushing face and smiled. “Could you tell me more about the gardens here?” 

You’d only been to Tsukasa’s garden and the main garden, which were both quite large and spectacular, but for the main estate to only have two gardens would be blasphemous in the name of Suou- and no doubt would Tsukasa know every inch and corner of his own estate: not only having lived there his entire life, but also having as much pride in Suou as he did for his ideals. 

Tsukasa cleared his throat, and his blush turned to sparkles in his eyes. “Yes, of course. Now then, there are four gardens on this estate…” There was absolutely no hesitation in Tsukasa’s eyes about whatever he was saying, and he might have known a bit too much about the history of the estate, but the smile on his face was absolutely worth it. It was totally different than the pragmatic, kindhearted Duke people loved- perhaps that package was what made him unique- no, human. While probably his image was for the better of him, it was a shame others didn’t get to see him just so excited. Although, probably, he was too human for high society. (it kind of sucked too tho, so it was understandable that he didn’t quite like it, despite the charming smile he often wore)

By the end of Tsukasa’s “grand speech”, marked by a relieved sigh, you’d decided that you wanted to see the Duchess’s garden, since it was, one, grand as heck, and two, Cerelia and the Duchess were quite close. You once again took Tsukasa’s arm on the way to the garden, admiring the views of the estate… only sometimes appreciating the history behind it. 

“Duke-” he cut you off. “Just call me Tsukasa… after all, we are engaged.” He was NOT hiding that blush.

It was weird to address him by name, since almost everyone around you called him Duke now- but you did see the merit in his argument. If he so wished, it wouldn’t be a problem. You could do that for him.

“Alright, Tsukasa.” you looked at him for approval. His smile gave it all away, and with a smile like that, you hardly even caught yourself smiling back at him. “Did you find anything in the Duchess’s garden?” 

Having so many opportunities to pursue this ring, you wouldn’t be surprised if he had already searched the place through and through, and maybe he had or hadn’t found something? In any case, information was always useful. 

Tsukasa thought to himself. It’d been years since he had even set foot in that garden, having mostly been busy with work and being mostly in the main gardens if he ever had the chance to relax outside. Despite his gut’s instincts that this might be the spot (along with the library), he’d never found anything there. All he could tell you about was the abandoned cottage in the far corner near the ends of the estate. There were disputes over whether it belonged to the Suou family or not, but no one lived there, and the Duchess simply let it be since it was so far from the estate.

Thus, with that wonderful hint, the two of you set off to the cottage. Rumor said that the cabin used to be a neighbor’s house from before they bought the lot. While they lived in peace for decades, the descendants from that family eventually moved into the estate, abandoning that property. None of the descendants of this time knew about it, so at this point it was a lost cause to investigate. In any case, if you found anything, that would be some tea to spill to Callie- she absolutely loved mysteries. (she deserved her true crime podcasts; someone bring her to the modern world) 

The floorboards’ creaks were more than enough to suggest the spider webs and the occasional animal scurrying about- even Callie’s curiosity (which was often quite strong) couldn’t pay her to touch a place like this with her bare hands (if you paid her with real gold, she would though). You summoned Kabal, a spirit skilled at locating ores (often used by summoner-miners) The grey translucent blob did not have to be held and worked better than any metal detector out there. 

By the way his lips were pursed and his hands tightly held his belt, you could tell there were absolutely no thoughts running in that head of his- there was only this distinct, low fear he had for the creepiness of this place. He stuck close to you, and as you ventured to the few rooms of the cottage (compared to the huge estate) his arm got closer and closer to you. Of course, he did so in the name of “protecting you”, but he should have just admitted he was at least a little bit scared. That was teasing content for the future. 

As Kabal moved toward a bedroom, of which you assumed was the main bedroom as it was the biggest you’d seen so far, his speed increased as you sighed in disappointment before nearly leaving you behind in the dust- literally (dust piled the floors). You really tired finding him, but he seemed to be nowhere in the room he had just entered. Wanting to avoid dust, you didn’t check every single corner of the room.

“Kabal, come out.” 

You could hardly see him as he returned from under the bed, previously hidden under the lack of light. This small spirit, no more than a whopping five inches tall, bumped your cheek before jumping around in the air and leading you towards the corner of the bed near the window. He disappeared under the bed again, probably dancing right on top of whatever he found. 

“Should we move the bed?” you asked the small spirit. He nodded with the entirety of his body.

Before you could ask Tsukasa to move the bed, he had already started warming up with various stretches and exercises. 

“You can count on me, my lady!” he declared, with that usual determined smile. There was no stopping him now. (you could’ve asked Oberon and Moradrid for help, both of which were stronger and faster than any humans, but you let your fiance handle it. There was really no point in getting rid of that huge smile of his. 

Tsukasa picked up the bed corner by corner- you would’ve offered to help, but that long dress of yours definitely would’ve gotten stuck under your shoes or even the bed, and there was absolutely no way Tsukasa was going to let you participate in a task like this.

You picked up Kabal as he asked for a hug, and you let him rest on your shoulder as you examined the floor. It was faint, but a square outline sat underneath where Kabal had danced. You looked for any way you could lift the wood off, but it was clearly stuck. The next thing you tried was to press on it, but there were far too many traps of this type of nature- so perhaps a stick would make it safer.

“Tsukasa, do you  have a-” he was having a staring contest with Kabal. Was he jealous? He turned around to look at you.

“Sorry… What do you need?” he looked embarrassed. You told him you needed a stick, and without question, he went to go fetch one from behind the cottage; he’d seen one on the way there. 

When he returned with the stick, which was thankfully a bit thick, you took it and carefully used it to press on the square, and it opened to reveal a scroll. It would’ve been a good place to put a ring, but perhaps a scroll was something. 

Maybe it had some sort of secret diary of someone from 1000 years ago, although there was really no way to tell unless you attempted to read it. And of course, it was possible that the ink had faded away by now.

As you opened the scroll, you noticed something that was odd- the text was in Japanese, and Japanese didn’t exist on the continent.

You brought it over to Tsukasa. “Do you know about this?”

It took him a minute to stop his strange staring contest with Kabal. “Oh- this… Can we go back to the estate? We must meet with Mother and Father.”

WORD COUNT | 3342 words

NOTES FROM QIAN | it's been two years, so i'm resetting the taglist (since there are probably a lot of people who changed urls etc). please send me an ask if you'd like to be tagged!!