#ryoyuki

Wait. Foot down! Foot down! Koyuki commanded herself before nearly stumbling into the other dancer next to her.

“Cut!” The director called, loud enough for those in the orchestra pit to hear.

Oh dear, did I mess up that badly? Koyuki found herself grimacing. However, it wasn’t just the fear of having made a mistake that caused her frown, but also the sight she had just witnessed.

“Osaka-san, you missed your line.” The director continued. “And Aikawa-san, what was that kiss all about? That’s not in the script. And for good reason, Christine and Raoul are trying to keep their engagement a secret.”

Oh, so it wasn’t me… But still, why was Ryo kissing Shizuku? Even if it was only on the cheek? Sure, they had kissing scenes in the script, but those were supposed to be stage kisses. What Koyuki just saw had not looked like a stage kiss. Why…?

“My apologies.” Ryo gave a slight bow “May we try that part again?”

“Eh, it’s about time for a break anyway.” The director dismissed with a wave. “Alright, everyone, take five.”

Ryo turned to Shizuku and bowed even deeper. “It seems I got caught up in Raoul’s passion. Please forgive me, Shizuku-san.”

Koyuki felt heat rise in her cheeks as Ryo’s natural charm radiated out, affecting many of the others on stage. Then, she felt something else…

Wait. No. No… Not here.

Koyuki fled the stage, ducking past the other actors to find the nearest, hopefully secluded area.

By the gods, she felt stupid, as the first tear slid down her cheek. She had known Ryo since primary school, and had known she was in love with her since at least high school. And yet, she had always, always been too shy to actually do anything about it.

Of course, the fact that despite Ryo’s debonair demeanor, she seemed utterly clueless when it came to recognizing Koyuki’s feelings for her. Or anyone’s feelings for her for that matter… Memories filled Koyuki’s mind of Ryo shrugging off a locker filled with love letters or chocolates or the like on Valentine’s or casually dismissing the confession of the umpteenth underclassman like she had no idea how devastated she was leaving the other girls.

Also, it hadn’t helped that they were two years apart. Koyuki had enjoyed a wonderful first year in both middle and high school, being able to spend time there with Ryo. But those were followed by two years of scrambling to find time outside of school. Sure, the two lived near each other, but the older they got, the busier their lives became, and the harder it was to find time to be together. And post high school managed to make things even more difficult as they had attended different schools.

They had, and continued to share a chatroom on LINE, as they both loved the stage, even if Ryo preferred acting while Koyuki preferred dancing. But it was not the same as meeting in person. School idols had been common ground for them, and Koyuki had been thrilled to continue to see Ryo show up for many shows even after graduation. But again, high school passed, they both stepped out into the adult world, and would have completely lost track of each other had it not been for LINE.

It was as if by some miracle that a mutual friend had recommended that Koyuki apply to a local community theater upon graduation. She had been accepted, and immediately recognized one of the theater’s top stars as Ryo. Koyuki had mentally chastised herself for not realizing the theater Ryo had been talking about on LINE had been the same one she had just joined. Not that it would have affected her choice to apply… or rather, perhaps it would have made her that much more anxious?

And with her stardom had come many admirers, both on and off the stage, whom Ryo handled in much the same manner as she had back in high school. She would hold herself with the air of a prince, smile grandly, add unnecessary flourishes to her movements and regularly speak in an almost regal manner. And then she seemed not to notice when girls swooned, fumbled their lines, or flat out forgot how to act.

Of course, not everyone was affected by Ryo’s charm. Shizuku, for example, was nigh unflappable once she got herself into her character’s mindset. In fact, the light dusting of pink on her cheeks after Ryo… after… Koyuki didn’t want to remember it, but the memory came anyway… after Ryo kissed her, was the most reaction Koyuki had seen of Shizuku. Had Ryo finally breached her barriers?

Was Ryo pursuing Shizuku? That was the age-old trope, right? The protagonist never went after the girls who threw themselves at their feet, but instead wanted the one that didn’t; the one that required the protagonist to chase her, to actually put effort into romancing her.

And why wouldn’t Ryo want to pursue someone like Shizuku? She was a rising star at the theater, hot on the tail of Ryo, with a rapidly growing fanbase that was pulling in new patrons. She probably could have earned the main role of Christine, instead of understudy, had it not been for the fact that she had only joined the theater earlier this year. And not only that, but Shizuku thrived in the spotlight, like Ryo herself, and unlike Koyuki, who was more comfortable blending into the corps de ballet.

“Yuki-chan?”

Oh no. Koyuki flinched. No. No. No. No. No. Why did it have to be her that found her? Literally anyone else would have been better…

“Are you alright?”

A hand landed atop Koyuki’s head, causing her to instinctively push up into it. It was a long-standing tradition between the two that had actually been started by Koyuki. Ages ago, when Ryo was the timider and more prone to tears of the two, Koyuki would pat her head in an effort to comfort her friend. Then, as Ryo grew into her confidence, she began to return the gesture. And nowadays, with their height difference, it was almost exclusively performed by Ryo, though Koyuki still managed to get in a few pats here and there if she caught the taller girl sitting.

“Yuki-chan?” Ryo repeated.

“How did you find me?” Koyuki heard herself ask, before her conscious mind had a chance to reconsider.

“I’ve been here over two years.” Ryo explained with a chuckle. “I know all the places my dear Yuki-chan might seek to hide.”

Koyuki quickly wiped her eyes on her sleeve, thankful that she was not wearing makeup as it was merely a rehearsal.

“Oh dear.” Ryo said as Koyuki stood and turned toward her. “Whatever might have upset my dear Yuki-chan to the point of tears?”

Something wrenched within Koyuki as she was reminded that Ryo was asking because she honestly did not know. But how to even begin to tell her…

“It’s nothing.” Koyuki decided to say.

“Nonsense.” Ryo dismissed. “The Yuki-chan I know may cry easily, but she doesn’t cry over nothing.”

Koyuki wasn’t sure she liked the phrasing, but at the same time, she couldn’t deny it either.

“Are you stressed by being on a professional stage? Have you been eating alright? Or sleeping alright?” Ryo pressed. “Did you happen to step wrong at some point? Are you hurt in any way? Would you like me to carry you?”

“… Kiss…” Koyuki finally murmured.

“I beg your pardon?”

“You kissed Shizuku…”

“I most certainly did not.” Ryo stated. “The Viscount de Chagny kissed Christine. ‘Twas certainly a mistake in timing. But we shall rectify that henceforth.”

Of course… Of course, Ryo would see it that way. When she got into character, she truly got into character. And Koyuki knew this. And yet…

“<If perchance I have offended.>” Ryo suddenly spoke in English. “<Think but this, and all is mended. I shall not kiss whom I love not. Lest… For? Uhm… I… no…>” She fumbled. “<It seems I lost my train of thought?>”

Koyuki couldn’t help giggling a little as she realized the line technically worked.

“A-anyway.” Ryo continued, trying to recover. “Fear not, Yuki-chan. Fair as she may be, Shizuku-san shall never be the girl for me. None shall ever be as precious to me as my dear Yuki-chan.”

Koyuki repressed a sigh. There she goes with the dramatics. She thought to herself, watching Ryo accentuate her words with unnecessarily flourished hand and arm movements.

“Yeah…” She said softly.

“Thou still doth not believe me?” Despite the formal wording, Ryo seemed to have deflated a bit.

“No, I believe you. We are the best of friends, right?”

“Friends, yes, of course. Always.”

Wait. Something felt… off. Koyuki reviewed all that had just transpired over the last few minutes. What was she missing?

“Ryo-chan?”

“Yes, Yuki-chan?”

“Are you alright?”

“I beg thy pardon?”

“Are you alright?”

“O-of course I am. Whatever reason would I have to not be alright?”

“Ryo-chan… I told you what was bothering me just now. Why won’t you do the same for me?”

Ryo squared her shoulders. “Yuki-chan. I would have you know that I treasure our friendship above all else.”

Koyuki smiled, though she sensed a “But…?”

“But I must beg thy forgiveness. For the longest time, I have desired more.”

What.

“And to that end, I have occasioned confessions. But thus far, to no avail. ‘Twould seem you are only interested in maintaining our friendship.”

What?

“Again, please forgive me if I have spoken out of turn. I do not wish to damage or lose our friendship.”

“Ryo-chan… you…” Wait… Koyuki mentally balked. “When did you confess?”

“Numerous times.”

“But…”

“The most grandiose would likely have been after our performance at the School Idol Festival hosted by Nijigasaki.”

Koyuki scanned her memory. She remembered the event overall, as well as the follow up event a couple months after. She had loved performing on stage with her fellow idols, especially Ryo of course. And their celebration afterward had been… wait…

“Ryo-chan… did you… confess with all of your…” how best to put it… “melodramatics and such?”

Ryo blinked. “Perhaps.”

“Ryo-chan…” This time, it was Koyuki who felt deflated.

By the gods, she felt stupid. All this time, she thought it had been Ryo who was romantically dense, but it had been herself.

Well, Ryo was probably still was dense as well, but…

“Maybe… you could just say it like you mean it?”

“But… I have always meant it.” Ryo insisted.

Koyuki shook her head. “Without all the dramatics. Please. Say it as the Ryo-chan I’ve always known off stage. The Ryo-chan who was worried and searched for me just now. The Ryo-chan who gently patted my head to reassure me, even before she knew what was wrong.”

Ryo swallowed and held Koyuki’s gaze for a long moment. “Yuki-chan.” She finally spoke but paused to swallow again. “I love you.”

Koyuki felt her heart skip a beat. And moisture began to gather in her eyes. Geez, was she going to cry again?

“I… I love you too.” She said as a tear slipped down her cheek.

“Yuki-chan.” Ryo closed the distance between them and placed a hand under Koyuki’s chin.

Oh, was this happening already?

Koyuki pushed up as far as she could onto her toes, with her ballet training giving her at least an extra centimeter over someone else of her height. All the while, Ryo leaned toward her, bringing their faces closer.

Closer.

Closer…

Koyuki closed her eyes.

Contact.

Koyuki was unable to stifle a slight whimper. Gods, she had wanted this for ages, and now that it was finally happening, she could scarcely believe it was real.

And she wanted more.

However, as she was already on the tips of her toes, Koyuki was unable to push herself up anymore. Thus, instead, she wrapped her arms around Ryo’s neck, hoping to pull the taller woman down a little more to deepen the kiss. Thankfully, Ryo wasn’t dense about this and responded appropriately.

“Ah, there you two… Oh, um, please excuse me…”

Koyuki yanked her arms off Ryo’s neck and tried to push away, only to remember too late that she was still standing on her toes…

“Woah, I got you, Yuki-chan.” Ryo lurched forward and slid an arm around Koyuki’s back.

However, even though her actions had steadied the shorter girl, Ryo continued to stoop and slipped her other arm behind Koyuki’s knees.

“Eh?” Koyuki uttered as Ryo hoisted her up into her arms, bridal style. Or was it princess style? Either or, it didn’t matter as she could feel her face burning with a strange mixture of embarrassment and delight.

“Thank you for fetching us, Shizuku-san.” Ryo said as she stepped out of the alcove. “I presume our break is over and rehearsal is to resume?”

“Yes, that is correct.” Shizuku confirmed from where she had moved just outside the hidden area. “Oh, and… congratulations, Ryo-san, Yuki-san.” She added with a genuine smile. “You two look lovely together.”

“Thank you.” Ryo acknowledged. “I believe this has been long overdue. But that is neither here nor there. Right now, what matters is the stage. Let us make haste.”

Koyuki laughed lightly. Of course Ryo would want to get back to acting as soon as possible. It was one of her greatest passions, and one of the things Koyuki loved most about her.

However, “Uhm… you can put me down now, Ryo-chan.”

Had she blinked, she might have missed it, but Koyuki was sure she saw a flash of an expression that made her believe Ryo wasn’t ready to put her down just yet. And it was quite adorable. Nonetheless, she relented.

“Thank you.” Koyuki said as her feet found the floor again.

“Will you be alright to dance?” Ryo inquired.

“Yes. Thank you” Koyuki nodded. “But… uhm… maybe…” She moved in close.

“Right, see you two out there.” Shizuku said, quickly stepping through the wing and onto the stage.

Without a word, Ryo leaned down and pressed her lips against Koyuki’s for an all too brief moment.

“Thanks…” Koyuki said as the taller girl righted herself.

Ryo offered a grand smile and held out a hand. “Come. Let us return to the stage.”

“Right.” Koyuki accepted and let herself be led out, amusing herself for second or two about being able to leap significantly higher than she ever had before once rehearsal began again.

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Author’s Note Continued: This was a fun one to write. Even if I probably worried a bit too much about keeping the two characters, well, in character. But I suppose if I didn’t, there will be at least one individual who will correct me.

That said, I’ve written Ryo a handful of times, and have plans to write more for her when I need an extra actor for whatever situation. And if I’m going to pair her with Koyuki, because I’m a sucker for childhood friends getting together, I should probably look to write more for the two together as well.

I guess that means I should assign them monster types for PoH. And while I think I have an amusing idea for Ryo, I may have to think a bit more for Koyuki.

And finally, for any readers unfamiliar with these two characters, here are their initial cards from SIF: