[persona 3;prose] in the house of my enemy
Takeba Yukari
Yukari didn't know whether it begun after news of her father's death made it on the television, or it had started a long time before that, from the day her father left to work for the Kirijo institute. Perhaps the news was the trigger that allowed her mother to finally break free from the conventional Japanese wife stereotype, free to badmouth her absent and dead husband. Whatever the cause was, Yukari simply wished heartily that she didn't have such a mother. It made living with her even harder than it had to be.
"Do be a dear and stay upstairs tonight, would you, Yukari? Matsuda-kun's coming over for dinner and well, you know..."
You just haven't told him about me yet. Just like all the others, she finished the sentence for her mother darkly in her mind, but all that came out of her mouth was, "Sure, I needed to study anyway. There's a test on Monday."
Her mother's smile was sickeningly sweet, and the fumes from the aroma candles that she lit to impress her latest boyfriend followed Yukari all the way to her room before she forced herself not to slam the door shut. The splintered wood poked harshly at her palms, evidence of the times when she couldn't help but kick her door in sheer frustration.
Yukari didn't want to hate her mother, but somehow, she couldn't help but despise the woman her father married. Love and committment evidently meant nothing to her mother, and soon enough Matsuda-kun would also go away, just like the others did.
Not that I have to deal with this anymore, she thought to herself, her eyes flicking to the white envelope on her table. She already knew the contents held within, having read them over and over, but still she picked the letter up, running her fingers over the familar words.
"Takeba Yukari,
It is with our greatest pleasure to inform you that as a result of your exemplar mock examinations, the Kirijo Group has found it fit to offer you a scholarship to Gekkoukan High School..."
She appreciated the fact that her school fees were now one less thing she had to depend on her mother for, but Yukari couldn't help but suspect that the out-of-the-blue scholarship was anything but rightfully earned. More likely, it had to do with the strange awakenings she's been having for the past few years, and the voice in her head, and the calls from one Ikutsuki-san representing the Kirijo Group.
Kirijo Group. She had hoped that she would never have anything to do with that name again, but after nearly a decade it seemed almost fated that it would come back to haunt her.
"...for your convenience we have arranged for your stay at Iwatodai Dormitories for the entire period of your studies..."
That part stood out at her. Even though her interactions with her mother were brief at best, Yukari had loathed the idea of strange men trooping into their home, acting as though they had every right to do so. She hated the fact that she had to keep her room locked almost permanently, so that they wouldn't be able to enter and look through her things. It made her feel like a prisoner.
But that was all to change. This letter, even with its hidden promises and meaning, was giving her a way out. A life, even if it was just for a few years, away from her mother.
A change for the better. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, after all.
Maybe.
Yukari tried not to think of the fact that her mother had been more than absent for the past ten years.
------------------
The day she left for Iwatodai, her mother didn't even bother to see her off.
"You're a big girl, aren't you, Yukari? Sixteen, you don't need your old mother to fuss about you, right? Besides, Toriyama-san's invited me to this really fancy restaurant for lunch and you can't possibly expect me to bow out on him..."
"It's okay, Mom, I'll be fine on my own," she bit out. "Have a good lunch."
"You're such a good girl, Yukari."
If you only knew.
Despite the confidence she originally thought she had, it still hurt when she walked to the train station by herself, lugging two heavy suitcases behind her. The sick feeling followed her all the way until she arrived at Iwatodai station. There was a bespectacled man holding a sign with her name on it.
"Takeba-san?" He asked, and she tried to muster up a smile for him. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Ikutsuki Shuji. I'm from the Kirijo Group. I'm here to bring you to Iwatodai Dorms."
"Ikutsuki-san. Nice to meet you."
"You must be tired. Here, let me help."
"Oh, no, it's fine. I can handle this by myself."
There was a short tussle as Ikutsuki-san tried to carry her bags for her, but eventually they compromised with her carrying one and him carrying the other. It was nice to not drag two heavy things behind her, but Yukari still didn't like having to rely on a man for help, even if he was just acting as a representative.
Two teenagers met them when they finally arrived at the dorms, and this time she couldn't fight against the boy when he took her other bag. The redheaded girl shot one look at a suddenly sheepish Ikutsuki-san, before turning her attention to Yukari.
"Welcome to Iwatodai Dorms," she said in a clipped voice. "You must be Takeba-san. This is Sanada Akihiko, and I'm Kirijo Mitsuru. We are your seniors, and we're also living at the dorm. Nice to meet you."
Yukari felt her mouth go dry. "Kirijo...?"
"Yes?"
She cleared her throat and bowed to hide the sudden heat in her cheeks. "N-nothing. Kirijo-san, Sanada-san, nice to meet you."
The boy laughed, strangely deep-voiced, making her look up again. "Intimidating as always. Mitsuru, she's probably tired from her journey."
"You're probably right, Akihiko," Kirijo-san said, and she tilted her head slightly at Yukari. "Perhaps you would like to rest first, before we convene at the fourth floor in the evening. You have been briefed, yes?"
"About?" At Ikutsuki-san's cough, Yukari stammered, "O-oh, of course. But, not much. Just...a little. I'm still not very sure what the entire matter is about."
Was it her imagination, or did Kirijo-san's lip curl a little? "No matter. We'll explain everything this evening. You should rest. I'll show you to your room."
"...Thank you."
Sanada-san and Ikutsuki-san fell back when Kirijo-san strode up the stairs, and having no other choice, Yukari followed her.
Kirijo. From the house of one enemy to another, huh, she found herself thinking before she could stop it, and she shook her head. She was just tired. Besides, it probably wasn't fair to judge Kirijo-san based on the faults of her predecessors. Who knew, she might be different.
Change is for the better. Yukari told herself. Have a more open mind, Yukari. Kirijo-san won't be an enemy until you make her out to be one.
She tried not to think if she should have thought about her mother any differently.
Yukari didn't know whether it begun after news of her father's death made it on the television, or it had started a long time before that, from the day her father left to work for the Kirijo institute. Perhaps the news was the trigger that allowed her mother to finally break free from the conventional Japanese wife stereotype, free to badmouth her absent and dead husband. Whatever the cause was, Yukari simply wished heartily that she didn't have such a mother. It made living with her even harder than it had to be.
"Do be a dear and stay upstairs tonight, would you, Yukari? Matsuda-kun's coming over for dinner and well, you know..."
You just haven't told him about me yet. Just like all the others, she finished the sentence for her mother darkly in her mind, but all that came out of her mouth was, "Sure, I needed to study anyway. There's a test on Monday."
Her mother's smile was sickeningly sweet, and the fumes from the aroma candles that she lit to impress her latest boyfriend followed Yukari all the way to her room before she forced herself not to slam the door shut. The splintered wood poked harshly at her palms, evidence of the times when she couldn't help but kick her door in sheer frustration.
Yukari didn't want to hate her mother, but somehow, she couldn't help but despise the woman her father married. Love and committment evidently meant nothing to her mother, and soon enough Matsuda-kun would also go away, just like the others did.
Not that I have to deal with this anymore, she thought to herself, her eyes flicking to the white envelope on her table. She already knew the contents held within, having read them over and over, but still she picked the letter up, running her fingers over the familar words.
"Takeba Yukari,
It is with our greatest pleasure to inform you that as a result of your exemplar mock examinations, the Kirijo Group has found it fit to offer you a scholarship to Gekkoukan High School..."
She appreciated the fact that her school fees were now one less thing she had to depend on her mother for, but Yukari couldn't help but suspect that the out-of-the-blue scholarship was anything but rightfully earned. More likely, it had to do with the strange awakenings she's been having for the past few years, and the voice in her head, and the calls from one Ikutsuki-san representing the Kirijo Group.
Kirijo Group. She had hoped that she would never have anything to do with that name again, but after nearly a decade it seemed almost fated that it would come back to haunt her.
"...for your convenience we have arranged for your stay at Iwatodai Dormitories for the entire period of your studies..."
That part stood out at her. Even though her interactions with her mother were brief at best, Yukari had loathed the idea of strange men trooping into their home, acting as though they had every right to do so. She hated the fact that she had to keep her room locked almost permanently, so that they wouldn't be able to enter and look through her things. It made her feel like a prisoner.
But that was all to change. This letter, even with its hidden promises and meaning, was giving her a way out. A life, even if it was just for a few years, away from her mother.
A change for the better. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, after all.
Maybe.
Yukari tried not to think of the fact that her mother had been more than absent for the past ten years.
------------------
The day she left for Iwatodai, her mother didn't even bother to see her off.
"You're a big girl, aren't you, Yukari? Sixteen, you don't need your old mother to fuss about you, right? Besides, Toriyama-san's invited me to this really fancy restaurant for lunch and you can't possibly expect me to bow out on him..."
"It's okay, Mom, I'll be fine on my own," she bit out. "Have a good lunch."
"You're such a good girl, Yukari."
If you only knew.
Despite the confidence she originally thought she had, it still hurt when she walked to the train station by herself, lugging two heavy suitcases behind her. The sick feeling followed her all the way until she arrived at Iwatodai station. There was a bespectacled man holding a sign with her name on it.
"Takeba-san?" He asked, and she tried to muster up a smile for him. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Ikutsuki Shuji. I'm from the Kirijo Group. I'm here to bring you to Iwatodai Dorms."
"Ikutsuki-san. Nice to meet you."
"You must be tired. Here, let me help."
"Oh, no, it's fine. I can handle this by myself."
There was a short tussle as Ikutsuki-san tried to carry her bags for her, but eventually they compromised with her carrying one and him carrying the other. It was nice to not drag two heavy things behind her, but Yukari still didn't like having to rely on a man for help, even if he was just acting as a representative.
Two teenagers met them when they finally arrived at the dorms, and this time she couldn't fight against the boy when he took her other bag. The redheaded girl shot one look at a suddenly sheepish Ikutsuki-san, before turning her attention to Yukari.
"Welcome to Iwatodai Dorms," she said in a clipped voice. "You must be Takeba-san. This is Sanada Akihiko, and I'm Kirijo Mitsuru. We are your seniors, and we're also living at the dorm. Nice to meet you."
Yukari felt her mouth go dry. "Kirijo...?"
"Yes?"
She cleared her throat and bowed to hide the sudden heat in her cheeks. "N-nothing. Kirijo-san, Sanada-san, nice to meet you."
The boy laughed, strangely deep-voiced, making her look up again. "Intimidating as always. Mitsuru, she's probably tired from her journey."
"You're probably right, Akihiko," Kirijo-san said, and she tilted her head slightly at Yukari. "Perhaps you would like to rest first, before we convene at the fourth floor in the evening. You have been briefed, yes?"
"About?" At Ikutsuki-san's cough, Yukari stammered, "O-oh, of course. But, not much. Just...a little. I'm still not very sure what the entire matter is about."
Was it her imagination, or did Kirijo-san's lip curl a little? "No matter. We'll explain everything this evening. You should rest. I'll show you to your room."
"...Thank you."
Sanada-san and Ikutsuki-san fell back when Kirijo-san strode up the stairs, and having no other choice, Yukari followed her.
Kirijo. From the house of one enemy to another, huh, she found herself thinking before she could stop it, and she shook her head. She was just tired. Besides, it probably wasn't fair to judge Kirijo-san based on the faults of her predecessors. Who knew, she might be different.
Change is for the better. Yukari told herself. Have a more open mind, Yukari. Kirijo-san won't be an enemy until you make her out to be one.
She tried not to think if she should have thought about her mother any differently.