1279/Royal Concerns

Royal Concerns
Date of Scene:	14 March 2024
Location:	Radiant Heart Academy
Synopsis:	Tadase Hotori follows the time-honored teenage tradition of talking to a girl's best friend instead of the girl directly.
Cast of Characters:	Tadase Hotori, Usagi Tsukino

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Tadase Hotori has posed:
    It really wasn't hard to figure out who Ami's closest friend was. Even though Tadase Hotori didn't share a grade with them, he knew the sort of social gravity well that Usagi Tsukino and Naru Osaka were, so it was likely that one of the two of them would be the answer. Then it took a simple question to his comrade-in-arms, fellow Student Council member and actually-sharing-a-grade-with-her Cho Konishi, to narrow that down a little more. And he'd met Usagi that day they managed to collide while feeding deer. So he just had to 'run into her'.    "Why don't you just ASK Mizuno-san yourself, though?" Kiseki asked. "Why do you need to ask someone else?" interrogated the floating king.

    "Because if I ask it risks making things awkward, that's why." he replied. "Besides, I just wanna know before I worry about anything else."

    "You're afraid." Kiseki says, firmly. "Really, I don't know why you bother lying to me. I'm you."

    For just a moment Tadase's face was red. "Well, I could say the same to you. Mister I didn't eat the chara-sized nibble of cake." he says. "Anyways, hush now." Kiseki rolled his eyes, crossed his arms, but did float quietly along.

    It wasn't hard to pick Usagi's twintails from the crowd, and it also wasn't hard to make sure none of the people next to her currently had blue hair, so he called out as he got closer. "Tsukino-san?" It wasn't -that- awkward for a student council member to call out a student as they came back from lunch, right? Well, maybe Usagi.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Lunch had been a power nap and a power meal, not necessarily in that order, and Usagi is still yaaaaawning as she ambles back towards class. Sleeping in the classroom would have just meant half her classmates asking if she was okay and the other half shaking their heads about how much trouble she'd be in when Haruno-sensei came and she was still sleeping, so -

Lunch table it had been. A classmate had taken pity on her and shaken her awake, and now here she is -

Wishing she was still asleep. These little naps weren't long enough for her to dream, so she could actually rest, at least a little.

It takes a second for her to realize that the voice she's hearing is an actual voice, and she turns, hand still covering her mouth to hide the yawn.

She blinks.

"Tadase-kun?"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    It's Kiseki that's actually the first to speak, though, as the slightly younger student council member closes the rest of the gulf between them. At least the armband meant that they probably wouldn't get accosted for being out in the halls a bit extra, too. "Wow, you look like... exhausted, Usagi." Says Kiseki.

    Tadase nods. "Are you alright, Tsukino-san?" Tadase asks her. "I was going to see if I could... ask about a few... um... things, but now I'm wondering if it's um... a good time for that?" he says.

    "...is it all the late night fighting?" Tadase asks, leaning in and lowering his voice.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Ugh, I know, but it's not like that gets you out of class, and 'evil mermaid jerk is sending me nightmares' isn't like, a valid medical condition or whatever."

Not that she'd tried - she can imagine what her homeroom teacher would make out of that excuse.

But, hey, hey, that was nothing for Tadase-kun or Kiseki to be worrying about. She waves a hand, smiling. "Nothing to worry about, really. What's up? Did you need something like - umm, student council-y, or you know... night life-y?"

Usagi lowers her voice as well, peeking around, but no one's really paying any attention.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    "Well... Ummm... if anybody asks it's about the Princess Prom. Which it is! Just. In a sort of. Not the usual way." He says. Tadase is normally pretty decent at talking about Offical things, but that is because he's partly being helped by Kiseki. But Kiseki has made his opinion known on this, and it's not an official thing, it's personal, so his words are not quite doing what he wants them to.

    "So... forgive me, Tsukino-san?" he says. "But ummm. Mizuno-san is your friend, right? Like, you're probably her closest friend?" He asks. Oh, he is squirming. And Usagi... miiiight be able to read it. She does have a way of understanding EMOTION after all. And Tadase is currently not very capable of hiding it.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"About Princess Prom?" She echoes, and there's confusion in her face for a second, followed by worry, followed by confident assuredness, followed by curiosity.

(The face journey: 'why is he asking me about prom' to 'oh no he isn't asking me about prom is he -' to 'of course he isn't everyone knows I'm taken' to 'but why is he asking me about prom?')

And then a bright, excited, eager smile sweeps across her face. "Yes! Yes, I am one of Ami-chan's closest friends! One of her best friends in fact, so if you're planning to ask her, I can definitely give you all kinds of great advice!"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    Tadase blinks and pauses and tries to collect himself as Usagi goes straight for the point. This, of course, gives the chibi-him time to speak up, from his floating perch above Tadase's right shoulder. "Yeah, maybe you can try advising him to actually ask her instead of bothering you, that'd probably be a good start."

    Tadase takes a deep breath and tries to tune out his mini-self. "I... I don't know if I am, or if I should." Tadase admits. "I've heard, like, she's spending a lot of time with this other dude anyways, and I didn't want to make things weird because I also like just talking and hanging out with her? Like, she's nice, and really really smart. But also really pretty." he says.

    "Yeah, she's so easy for you to be around you didn't realize you liked her until like two weeks after I knew." Kiseki says. Tadase shoots him a glare and Kiseki shrugs and smirks but does actually shut up.

    "So yeah, I'm still trying to figure out if I should? Like, she's also a year above me." he points out.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"What, you mean Izou?" It's not scorn in Usagi's voice, because she's a little too nice for that. But there's some definite oh don't you worry about him dismissiveness that Tadase might find reassuring. "He's Mamochan's friend, and Ami-chan's like, helping him study and whatever. Some of Mamochan's friends fell behind and Ami-chan's never met a lost cause she didn't want to help when it comes to grades."

She waves a little, as if to say, lost cause here!

"First of all, you should definitely listen to Kiseki, and you should also, definitely listen to your Usagi-senpai, because it sounds like you really want to ask Ami-chan, and I bet she'd love it if you did. Mamochan's a year above me, and we're like, the cutest couple in the whole school, so that's not really something to worry about unless you're worried about it."

He thinks Ami is pretty, but that was the third thing. He also thinks she's nice (true) and really smart (very true). Ami-chan would probably like a boy who admired her smarts even before he admired her beauty, so that checks out, and he's already worried about Zoisite, so that's good.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    When Ami says helping him study, he lets out a little bit of the breath he was holding in. Not all of it, but some of it. And then when she says to listen to Kiseki, the little king doesn't say anything. He does, however, float over to Usagi's side of the conversation so he can look at Tadase with the most obnoxious cheesy grin on his face.

    "I'm not worried about it!" Tadase says, flailing a bit with his hand. "I just didn't know if it was the sort of thing she'd worry about! I was worried she might worry - um..." he pauses and sighs.

    He takes another breath and visibly stands up a little bit straighter. "And honestly, I rely on Kiseki's help to turn down confession letters pretty much all the time." he admits. "And I've never written one. Or asked someone out. The last time I realized I liked a girl, she moved away the next week. Before I said anything. Not that it would have changed anything? And I know that wasn't my fault but it's probably still impacting me." He says, being surprisingly frank. Then again, he hasn't had a lot of chance to talk about it.

    "So... Kiseki, you're right. I'm afraid. But I'm also afraid not to ask." he adds. "So I'm just trying to... I guess make sure I have as much going in the right way as I can? Because I don't want to if it's just going to cause things to be weird. But if I can succeed, I also want to do everything I can to make that the outcome."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"So you were a little worried," she says, but gently, and then she reaches out and pats him on the shoulder. "I don't think you should be! You can ask her to the dance. Ami-chan's cool, and sweet, and kind. Even if she doesn't feel the same way, she wouldn't let it make things weird, but - I really do think she'll want to go as you know, a proper date. I get a vibe."

Tadase is handsome and friendly and he knows about magic and he's got a whole, princely vibe to him, and she thinks, overall, that he's a much better fit than Zoisite. SHe will happily push them at each other.

She does wince though, at the other thing. "That's... sad, but you know - maybe that's a sign you shouldn't let this chance pass you by?"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    Tadase does, listen, intently. It's obvious that he cares - not just about what Usagi is saying but about the content. "I was a lot worried." He mumbles. "I think I still am, but... there's no point in... asking you for your opinion, for help, and then not taking it into account and doing what you suggest." Kiseki makes an annoyed face and sound. "Okay, what you and Kiseki have now suggested."

    "I mean... maybe it is a sign. But also, if I'd asked her and she'd had to leave a week later, that would have been tough too, hard on both of us." he says. "I don't know if it would be better or worse... probably both, in different ways."

    "I'm... sorry I kind of dragged you off for this, but I really appreciate it - and I wasn't sure who would know Mizuno-san well enough to actually give me... advice I felt I could trust."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
A little hand flap, don't worry about it, don't worry about it! "I don't mind at all," Usagi says cheerfully, "This is great, and you know, Ami-chan has the cutest dress, perfect for prom. You'll get to go with one of the prettiest girls in school."

Usagi means it too - as far as she's concerned, all of her friends are beautiful, and Anmi is especially lovely.

"It's normal to be nervous - I mean, I had a lot going on with Mamochan, that's not all that, relatable, but I was nervous," dear reader, she really wasn't, but also, she and Hematite were not to be copied, "and you're right. It's not like she moved because of you, so it might have been terrible no matter what. But this is different, and you've got a real chance, not just to find out if you and Ami-chan have a good time - but to make Ami-chan really happy, you know?"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    "I'm sure anything she wears will be amazing." Tadase says. Unprompted. Kiseki shakes his head a little. "Um, sorry, ignore that. But... I don't disagree that I'd be going with one of the prettiest girls in school, no." he says. "She really is magical." And then stops. "I mean like. Magic. Like you and me. And Kiseki." His poor coverup is clearly that.

    He rubs the back of his neck. "Yeah I wasn't... sure if she'd be happy or not, to be asked. Like. I figured she'd have been asked already or something. She's smart and cute and clever - I gotta figure she deals with at least as many confession letters as I do, right? There's no way she doesn't. And I thought, I don't want her to think I was only enjoying our time with her cause I was trying to ask her out? I've had people do that to me and it sucks. But if it would actually make her happy to get one from me too then that's a whole other thing."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi is biting her lip to hide her giggles. This is entirely too cute, alright? "You're not wrong. About any of that."

Ami-chan would look good in anything, and she's magical, and she's great, in general.

"See, I don't know for sure, but, I don't think Ami-chan's gotten a lot of love letters. A lot of people think because she's so smart, she doesn't want normal things, like friends and to hang out, and to you know - go to a dance. So I think she'll be really happy, and really surprised, when you ask her."

She's pretty sure of it, even.

"And it won't just be because someone asked her. It will be because you asked her."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
    Tadase, even if someone had said the Word around him, would not have been able to hide the way his eyes brighten up at Usagi saying because he asked her specifically. In fact, sparkles actually emit from him, and if Usagi was less tired she'd have a harder time explaining the very real, very physical, very bright little sparks of light. But they're not him trying to make use of his power. They're just offshoots of his happiness.

    "Well, then... then... I just need to figure out what I'm gonna say, then. And say it." he says, affirmatively.

    "In front of a mirror ten or twenty times first, so you can screw it up live?" Kiseki unhelpfully teases, and Tadase's sparkles just stop. But then Kiseki shakes his head. "No, I'll help you say it with confidence and firmness, like a King really should tell a lady how she feels." he says. And that makes Tadase smile again.

    "Thank you a lot, Tsukino-san." Tadase says with a slight bow. "I understand why you make friends so easily. I'm sorry for keeping you for my own selfish reasons, and I'll let you return to class now." he says. He starts to walk away but Kiseki stays behind for a moment.

    "Thanks, Usagi. Tadase-kun has become a guy who really wants to do the right thing all the time... but it means sometimes he doesn't do anything at all in fear of that. Thankfully, he's got me..." and Kiseki grins "... to help him out. And also... friends like you. I thank you as well." Kiseki says, though he does not bow. Then he flies off after Tadase.