As Above (So Below)

Chapter Fourteen: Retribution

Suguru waited against the wall with a silent Choso, waiting for what he assumed would be Hanami's presence. Without a mentor to lead them both, Suguru was stuck until someone else dragged him along. While he enjoyed Choso's presence and the calm, unwavering nature of it, there was no way Choso could walk him backstage. He had to remain neutral in the face of the rest of the Capital. Dragging his tribute along like a lost puppy would have him under intense scrutiny, and by extension Suguru. The absolute last thing he wanted was more eyes on him. Jogo and Gojo were plenty.

To his left there was a click of a lock before Hanami exited. She'd gotten there first, by all accounts she should have already finished, When Suguru looked at Yuki's dark circles and tense expression he understood. Coaching Hanami must have been a nightmare. There was no question that she was the harder of the two. Even though Suguru had garnered himself some unwanted and relatively dangerous attention, Hanami had made no effort in trying to secure herself much of anything. No allies – thought Suguru's had been a mistake – no enemies, no positive attention from the game makers. She was skating by banking on her looks. They did enough, clearly, until this point no one had so much as side-eyed her. The clock was running out though, and in order to gain something for herself, she had to put on a show.

There was a sneer on the girl's face. Hanami's carved cheekbones and jaw were firmly set as she neared. She was dusted with the same glitter. The sheen of it covering the tattoos was enchanting almost. She looked fiercer than she had before but airier as well. Opposite of Suguru, Hanami's dress was a flowing sheet of cream and beige, and around her spiraled moss instead of roots. Between the intense black of the ink swirling across her body and the lightness of the costume, she looked like an ornamental dagger, beautiful but deadly.

"Not leaving much to the imagination are we, Suguru?" she bit as she walked. The fabric kicked out around her like waves.

"Here I was about to compliment you," Suguru raised his brows. There was no point to them being friends. One or both of them would be dead in a few days anyway. Suguru found himself enjoying the small amount of banter they had though. He'd miss it when this was all said and done.

"Save it," Hanami groaned. "You better hope those lights avoid your legs or the entire Capital is gonna see your d-"

"Hanami!" Yuki snapped. Choso stifled a laugh behind Suguru. More often than not, Suguru assumed there was criticism from the tributes about the costumes. Hanami had no shame in expressing her thoughts on the matter. Both times had been quite amusing.

Suguru did become quite aware though of the fabric. It was sheer-ish, but surely it would hold up in the light of the stage, right?

"I do appreciate the feedback, Hanami," Choso smiled. The earrings in his ears dangled back and forth and glinted in the light. "You three should get going."

Yuki swallowed harshly as she gestured for the two of them to follow. There were no lingering glances towards her lover this time, the anxiety overwhelmed her. Choso slipped back into the room in silence, leaving them as he had before.

It was a brief, incredibly tense walk to get backstage. Suguru moved stiffer than he had before, and Hanami's anger echoed around her. The overall energy was so much worse than a few days prior. Chariots were one thing and training was another. Sure, his plan was to save face and stay quiet, but he had to manage it live. He had to speak and not let residual resentment or fear slip through the cracks. One falter underneath those lights would mean death for Suguru. This is where he truly felt the divide between himself and the Careers.

As they pushed their way through the crowd of tributes and mentors in the dim room, Suguru felt the electric charge of the air. The hairs on his arms stood on end, and a feeling of worry settled itself deep in his gut. Training to be ruthless was easy enough. If you give a kid a knife and teach them to use it, eventually they'll come home with a kill. But teaching someone to lie, to sit pretty and be appetizing was different. It required a subtlety that murder didn't allow. Snaking into the minds of the onlookers and convincing them of something was more difficult than plunging a sword into a chest.