************************************************************ Logging Started: 04/16/2001 at 20:43:35 ------------------------------------------------------------ Wakaba hasn't, admittedly, been about as much lately - but when she is, she's always bouncing with a bit more of confidence and enthusiasm; she has a seeeeeeecret -- but she's not telling what it is! Not even her best friend - who would probably disapprove. >.> *knock knock* At the door. Utena yawns, stretching her arms over her head and blinking at the sudden sound of the door. Can't be Himemiya, she's got a key... "Just a sec!" she yells, springing off the chair she was half-dozing in (clutching a pillow to her stomach, legs all curled up, brooding just a little over the event to come and trying to figure out if it's possible to STOP it...) She almost trips over a bump in the rug, but catches herself, and opens the door to peek out. "Dar... oh, Wakaba! C'mon in..." Juri wanders into the hall behind Wakaba.. and blinks, catching sight of the girl's bouncey ponytail. She almost hesitates.. but decides to continue up to Utena's apartment. When she comes within sight of the Victor she nods lightly, "Ten'jou.. Shinohara." Wakaba bounces into Utena's apartment, reaching out to powerglomp the pink haired girl happily, "Utenautenautenautenautena!!" Erk! Company! Wakaba stops mid-glomp, glancing over her shoulder, "Ah - konbanwa Juri-sempai." Eheheh. She lets go of Utena, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. Juri actually spreads a faint smile at the genki girl, "In good spirits as always, Shinohara-san." Not a compliment, not a complaint.. just a comment. Utena sweatbeads, just gently, and grins as she suddenly looks over Wakaba's shoulder to see the elegant dark gold of Juri's curls and the cool imperial green of her gaze. She absently rubs the back of Wakaba's head playfully, mussing her ponytail just a touch, and laughs, "... I'm glad to see you too, Wakaba... Juri-sempai.." The last words are slightly curious. As for Utena herself, well, she's dressed casual, hair pulled into a long singular braid wound loosely around the top of her head in a sort of knot, slim black sweatpants on her legs and an oversized T-shirt. As she disengages from Wakaba (or is that the other way around?) she says, "Why don't you both come in, and I'll make some tea here... "I'm surprised to see you here, sempai," she tosses toward Juri.. wondering if Touga's told her yet, or if they've met. She desperately wants to ask Juri's advice on the situation, but... well, what difference is it going to make if Wakaba knows, at this point? One thing at a time though... She shifts off toward the little kitchenette. "Gomen.. just a second." Wakaba does indeed hop on into the apartment after Utena, skipping even, as she flashes a bright and sunny smile at Juri. "Hai sempai, it's a wonderful day, I can't help but be happy!" Er.. More so. n.n; Juri slips into the apartment elegantly, following behind you both. She allows her smile to spread a little further for Wakaba.. you get the feeling she's grown more accustomed to the girl. Once she's in the room she closes the door behind her and watches Utena's movements, "I'm glad to see you're doing well, Ten'jou.." Utena strides lightly back from the kitchen and gestures at two chairs- having added slightly more furniture (and having not bothered to desc it yet!) since Himemiya's arrival. "You too, sempai," she says politely, then eyes Wakaba's particularly happy grin and leans over to tease her. "You're -really- cheerful lately. Got a new boyfriend you're hiding or something?" She narrows one eye, grinning evilly. ^_- To Juri, she then says while straightening, "I'd be a hell of a lot happier if I hadn't met Touga the other day again..." Juri blinks.. and quirks a golden eyebrow, "Pardon... Kiryuu-san...?" She shifts her weight, not sitting quite yet, "He is here?" Eep. Wakaba freezes in her spot as Utena turns to look at Juri, turning a bright red from the top of her head to her toes. ****o.o**** How could she know! O.O Oh wait.. sh doesn't. Shaking her head, "of course not Utena-sama!" Eheh heh... Wakaba? Blushing? Must be your imagination since she's looking totally innocent now. 9.9 Utena rests her hands on Wakaba's shoulders, "Well, I knew you'd move on from me someday.... I'm heartbroken, but I think I'll survive." she says, before nodding to Juri. "Just the other day.. he sent me a notecard and had me meet him." She sighs, shaking her head, and looking carefully into Juri's dark gaze. "We've got an arrangement to meet again in a few days..." The slim girl shakes her head, exhaling. "... I really don't want to be doing this." Juri narrows her eyes.. and seems uncomfortable. The entire group from Ootori seems to have come.. and that doesn't have a very good effect on her, "So ka.." "WAaa!" Wakaba proceeds to glomp onto Utena's arm, "You're jealous Utena! That's so cute! Don't worry, I'll always love you Utena-samaa; you'll never never never lose me!" n.n Utena's just, and let's admit it, that cool! n.n She's pretty oblivious to the conversation between Juri and Utena - well she's overhearing it, but it isn't really sinking in much. Utena grins at Wakaba, "Jealous? I'm not jealous.. I'm happy for you, Wakaba... it's really put a cute blush in your face, and it's nice to see you so happy." Aww, how can you not love it when she talks so nice like that? She asks Juri, softly, "I don't suppose the Seitokai is holding meetings again...?" Juri crosses her arms over her chest with a slight coldness before stating softly, "Not that I've been informed of." As Wakaba slips off to bathroom (hey, I need some way to continue things!) Utena watches her, then quickly takes up a chair opposite Juri and leans forward slightly embarrassedly, rubbing the back of her neck before lifting her gaze to the cool-eyed duellist. "He challenged me to a duel." she murmurs, watchful for Wakaba's return. Juri's face almost slackens, "Excuse me...?" She lowers herself into a chair finally and crosses her legs with a thoughtful expression in her eyes.. "I can't believe this is happening again." One of the few inner-thoughts that's ever escaped her lips. She blinks, realizing the fact, and looks back to you, "Did you accept?" Utena closes her eyes. "... yes," she says, shaking her head as her lips press to a tight line. "... I didn't really want to, but he challenged me, and... " In truth, she didn't even think she COULD say no... only Juri's comment now brings the possibility into her mind. ".. he made me angry, and I think I just... said yes, without thinking... and then I told him that if I won, he'd leave the game entirely... and he said I would do so if he won." She looks up, her azure gaze darkened and sad. "... now I'm regretting it, but... it's too late." She knows why he challenged her.. oh, yes, she knows. But, damn him, that's exactly why she left him to become a stronger prince... Juri's hand tenses as it rests on the table, "I see.. "the game".. but I thought the game was over. How can it possibly survive out here? This is reality. What are you duelling for now, Ten'jou?" Utena looks briefly pained. ".. For Himemiya, of course... because he wants to take her away from me... because.. he wants to 'protect' me from something, and I don't want to be his perfect little princess any more." She shakes her head again. "I begged him not to do it, but I couldn't stop him, and after he'd said it, if I said no.... "She shudders,. "We're all here. He's right... I can feel that, even though we're in this place... that we're not there... that it's not over. He said... " She takes in a breath, then continues, "No matter what you think of the Duels, you continue to fight in them. You feel the same as the rest of us do... called by something that we don't quite understand. You still feel Ohtori around you, even though we are no longer on the same world... you feel echoes of your past in a place where they have no right to be... against all logic, you can't give it up. No matter what the price, you feel called to stay on till the end..." SHe looks at you, wearily. "He's right." Halfway through your quotations from Kiryuu she turns away, looking at the opposite side of your apartment. You know he's right, and you know that at least a part of Juri knows he's right. But she doesn't seem willing to verbally admit it, instead she admits it by not saying a word about it. "When is the duel?" Utena rises from her chair, pacing off to the left a few steps, turning her side to you. "A few days... he said the Arena would appear over the rooftop of the Maboroshi school for us. Sempai, I... I guess it's too late to stop, isn't it? I just have to go through it... maybe this one duel will be all it takes... maybe that'll end it. I'm just.. I don't want to see HImemiya go through anything more... nobody wants to stop this more than I do." Utena says, "But the stakes are so high... if I default... and I do it now that I've accepted it under the rules.. then.. I'd really lose her, wouldn't I... so..now I can't stop." Juri is silent for several moments.. she's carrying a conversation on in her head of things she wants to say. About how it's unfair, seems they shouldn't have to follow the rules.. but, she knows that all of her comments would fall.. answered already by Kiryuu. They will always feel bound to the game.. bound by something nameless and unknown, "One duel is never enough, Ten'jou.." Utena nods once, her eyes focused on the doorway. "I know." she says. "I always think each duel will be the end.. that there won't be a need for another. And I keep hoping this one will be the end... Then I'd have beaten everyone once. I keep turning it around and around in my head, trying to decide whether I could live with myself really if I just threw the duel, or didn't appear for it. I thought so hard about it... but I couldn't do it. I couldn't live with any kind of pride in myself if I did things like that. So.. instead.. I've let him suckerpunch me into doing this damn thing that I /don't/ want to be doing, because I /have/ to do it." She seems to struggle with herself, but in reality, she knows her course was set long before.. and she knew in her bones before she ever saw Touga that as the other Duellists arrived, the game would arrive with them. She turns back to you, smiling that painfully innocent smile. "Sorry, sempai.. I guess I got fooled pretty good, didn't I? Because of me it's going to start up again..." Juri glances back to you just in time to see your smile and she almost appears to wince before replying, "It would have started without or without you, Ten'jou. Yet, with you, we may have a better chance of ending it." Her eyes are like two dark pools.. untouched, unwavering.. so you know she's sincere. Utena says, "Is that really true?" Utena asks you mildly. "If I wasn't here, there wouldn't be a Victor, would there... and then HImemiya, as she came, would be on her own. I'm... she could protect herself, couldn't she?" Something in Utena's mind wavers for a moment; she feels herself standing toes-first on the edge of a massive precipice. A lack of vision... a sudden understanding... right on the edge of the crack in her own illusion... she can smell the air rushing up from that cleft in herself, feel it..but she doesn't make the jump into the pit. "... She couldn't be owned by anyone if there wasn't a Victor." Poor Utena is caught on the edge between her own pride, her ambition to be a prince, and her need to protect someone, by her deep need to do right by Himemiya, and the others... how do you make a choice between pride and friendship? Either way, you lose... She shies away from that mental crack in her world. "... I guess that's why I laid down that condition... I mean, Saionji might still.... but you and Miki don't really care about her, do you? And if Touga's not in the game, he won't be able to..." Juri shrugs lightly, watching your eyes as if she can see the fall before you.. so she tries to pick her words carefully. "Ten'jou.. I can't speak for the others, but I could care less about the duels or your Himemiya. I just want out.. so, yes, I'd do whatever it took to get that." Utena nods once, slowly... looking at you. "... what would you do if you were in my situation?" Juri exhales heavily.. turning her gaze to her cursed ring.. "We are in two very different situtations, Ten'jou.. it's hard to say what I would do because I've never been in your position.. but.." A contemplative air passes over her face, "I'd duel." Her eyes refocus as she adds, "Besides.. go with your instinct. It's what makes you the Victor." Utena tilts her head, exhaling once as she nods, hearing your answer. All throughout the conversation, subliminally, the kettle in the kitchen had begun to boil, and now the whine which was lowlying has become clearer.. louder... "Thanks for being so direct with me, sempai." she comments finally, the air of a woman about to make a very difficult choice hanging around her like a heavy rose-scented perfume. Destiny.. fate... pride... and it all boils down to whether her pride is greater than her compassion. She will, however, be damned if her pride drives her to cause others to suffer . "This is a really different world." she says, and goes off to the kitchen to answer the kettle. "I wish I'd been thinking more clearly. He got me so worked up." She returns with tea, bringing a cup and setting it in front of you.