For some reason this reply turned into a 2k+ blip lmao!!
A/N: I’ve never written any DiaRiko in Dia’s POV so far, so this is fun ( ´ ω ` )Words: 2,175
Kurosawa Dia is not amused.
She takes a deep breath and tries to rationalize her predicament once more. She has been walking around this seemingly endless stretch of forest path, for who knows how long, and frankly she is tired of this nonsense. Oh she still has stamina left, thank you very much. As if a mere walk could defeat the Kurosawa heiress! No, she is simply frustrated at the lack of goal. If she has a known purpose, then she would know where to direct her energy towards. As it is, she appears to be stuck in this maze without an exit in sight.
Admittedly, the forest is breathtaking with its lively, vibrant colors yet retains that serene aura of nature, a haven she would have enjoyed after a stressful day.
However, she already knows this isn’t real. The odd colors aside, she is certain that this is a dream because – no way she would get lost in the first place! That’s preposterous! She’s only ever gotten lost once on Awashima Island, and that was only due to Kanan and Mari having an unfair advantage when they played hide and seek.
Dia shakes her head. She pinches herself for the umpteenth time, sighing at the lack of pain which again confirms her speculation. Practical as ever, she keeps following the forest trail to see where it leads her, and even tries to step off of the road a few times but inexplicably finds herself right back on the track.
In a dream world, shouldn’t she be the master of the landscape? Should she not be able to affect how her subconscious shapes the world?
She could, of course, simply wait for the alarm to inevitably wake her up for school, but that is not who Kurosawa Dia is!
“I command you to let me out of this blasted forest!” Dia uses her most fearsome voice, the tone she uses during student council budget meetings and Aqours discussions. Enough is enough!
A moment later, the trees in front of wobble and melts to the ground, revealing a secret path. She holds her head high, pleased that things are finally going her way, although a part of her is surprised that her demand is actually met.
“See, you just have to make things happen. Nothing will be accomplished if you remain idle!” Dia smiles confidently as she hurries down the new trail. “You just have to take control and-”
She pauses, frowning as she surveys the thinning forest and the massive silhouette looming ahead of her. The colors of the trees have become more and more vivid, fitting of lollipops and candies and even chocolate. Upon closer inspection, the building is actually a castle seemingly constructed out of cake and confectionery.
Blinking, she fleetingly recalls a Western fairy tale called ‘Hansel and Gretel’, and she can’t help but feel a bit uneasy as she approaches the palace.
Well, how bad could a dwelling of sweets be, since this is a dream?
She is mildly disappointed when she couldn’t find any pudding amidst the lawn of snacks and desserts, though she berates herself a moment later for such a silly thought. Never take food from strangers or of suspicious origins, even in a dream!
“Welcome to my humble abode, Dia-san.”
Dia gapes.
There, perched on a balcony reminiscent of the famed Romeo and Juliet, is Sakurauchi Riko. Her demeanor, however, is completely different than what Dia knows of her composed, reserved kouhai.
Dressed in an elegant outfit fitting of royalty and adorned with golden trinkets, the younger girl smiles down at her guest. The smile exudes sheer confidence, as if she knows exactly what is happening and has everything under her control.
The way Riko gazes at her reminds her of the playful yet predatory manner that a cat watches its prey.
Wait, are those cat ears on her head and a fluffy tail swishing like a pendulum behind her…?
“I assure you they’re real, Dia-san.” Riko giggles prettily and hops down from her perch, her white boots making no sound as she lands on the lawn.
“W-What… this is absurd,” Dia folds her arms and turns away from her kouhai. It’s distracting, really, how dashing Riko appears in such garment. Combined with the side braid, draped over her right shoulder, and the faint audacious smirk, this girl does indeed look the master of this world. “This ridiculous dream has gone on long enough. Castle made of cakes, lawn full of sweets and now my kouhai is some sort of… Cheshire Cat-human? No, none of this real, and I demand that you stop this foolishness.”
Riko’s tail curls almost lazily at her response. “As expected of Dia-san, straight to the point hmm? Well then, I have several solutions for you…”
With a graceful gesture, eight vials suddenly materialize out of thin air. Each of these transparent bottles contains a colored liquid. Dia frowns skeptically when she recognizes that those happen to be the representative colors of each member of Aqours.
“What are these supposed to be?”
“Each vial has different effects, though I cannot reveal what secret each one holds,” Riko tilts her head and beckons the Red Vial with her finger. “What about this one? Are you not curious what you taste like?”
Dia’s frown deepens at the suggestive subtext, and Riko’s amber eyes seem to shimmer in jest.
“No, I care not. All I want is to go home or, rather, wake up from this silly dream.”
Riko chuckles throatily then, the sound tickling within Dia’s chest and making her cheeks heat up. “You still think this to be a simple dream? What is a dream? Many claim it is based off of your emotions, your hidden desires… admit it, you like seeing me this way, senpai.”
The last word is uttered with a languid purr, and Dia could feel herself blush harder. She tries to deny it yet words are caught in her parched throat.
She vividly recalls what happened during practice today, when they all tried on their respective subunit outfits. You, Kanan, Yoshiko and Ruby busily flit around them to do final checkups, to ensure that the measurements are fine and to add more embellishments if needed. Each subunit has its own theme, its own style, especially since this is their second release. Yoshiko and Mari got into their zone fairly quickly while Riko had stood on the side, clearly conflicted about how to express herself.
Aqours’ composer is not timid by any means and could be quite headstrong whenever the situation calls for it, a quality that Dia both understands and respects. However, Dia also notices that Riko prefers to stay on the sidelines instead of the spotlight. Unlike their whole group of nine, being in a subunit requires her to be more actively involved, and thus she’s been trying to adapt to the image that Strawberry Trapper had presented.
Even then, even after composing Koware Yasuki, Riko is still embarrassed about Guilty Kiss’ style. She deemed the outfit too much for her, especially her exposed midriff. Though engrossed with Azalea’s own checkups, Dia still took the time to help out her kouhais and had thought the suit fit Riko quite well. The violet bow tie complements her wine-colored hair, and those tight glossy pants really show off her legs…
Click.
Dia snaps out of her flashback and blinks up at Riko. With those boots, the younger girl now stands a bit taller than her, enough that Dia has to look up to meet her amused gaze.
“W-What are you doing?”
Click.
Dia takes a step back. Riko takes a step closer.
“Hey, I said-”
Click.
Dia is forced to back away, only to find their distance shortened again with a fluid stride. Normally, she doesn’t mind having her personal space encroached, having grown up with huggle-happy Kanan and boob-molesting Mari, and she herself has used such intimidation tactic countless times. However, her instincts warn her that she needs to maintain a certain distance from this Riko, the master of this realm.
Unfortunately for Dia, her back soon meets the castle wall beneath the balcony and that’s when Riko strikes.
Dia’s heart lurches as Riko slams a hand beside her head and leans close.
“You still want to leave this… dream, Dia-san?”
Dia swallows hard but stubbornly glares back, refusing to show any weakness. “Yes.”
“Then you must pick one, drink one.” The eight vials hover above them, slowly circling in a mesmerizing rhythm. Dia tries to focus her mind, finding it difficult to think due to their close proximity.
“… one is missing, Riko-san. Should there not be nine in total?”
Riko smiles. Within a blink of an eye, the eight vials vanish and are replaced by a single one filled with sakura-colored liquid.
“You have made your choice.”
Before Dia could move or even reply, Riko downs the drink in one swift motion. Amber eyes narrowing, she tilts her chin and slowly leans in.
Dia hastily closes her eyes and waits for the inevitable. She couldn’t move away, or rather, she doesn’t want to. This is just a dream, so there’s no harm right? It’s fine to indulge herself…
Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep!
Dia snaps her eyes open, her face flushed and her heart pounding like a galloping horse. It takes several deep breaths for her confusion to subside. She scowls at her old-fashioned alarm, smacking the button on the top to silence it only to cradle her throbbing hand a moment later.
The dream is still fresh in her mind, and she is mortified at how utterly disappointed she feels about the way it ended. No, she refuses to allow herself to wallow in such a ridiculous matter!
Grumpily, she goes through her morning routines in a pace faster than usual. Once ready, she tells a very drowsy Ruby that she’s heading to school early to finish up some student council work.
The brisk morning walk to Uranohoshi clears up her mind just as she hopes it would. She begins to list the many things she has to accomplish today, relieved for something to distract her mind, to regain a degree of control over her reality. As per usual, she drops by Aqours’ clubroom to see if any paperwork is left behind even though that never happens.
To her surprise, someone else is here already.
“D-Dia-san, good morning!” Riko looks just as startled as she is, her cheeks flushing as if caught red-handed.
“Good morning, Riko-san. Why are you here so early…” Dia trails off as she looks at the younger girl up and down, puzzled why she’s wearing the new Guilty Kiss outfit.
“Well, I thought a great deal about what happened yesterday and, I really should just get over my embarrassment. You-chan and Yocchan tried so hard to make this, so I need to try my best too.” Riko chuckles sheepishly, her gaze averted and her ears red. “I figure I should just wear the outfit until I get used to it. Even though I disapprove of what Mari-san and Yocchan do sometimes, I… I still hold pride as a member of our subunit.”
Dia nods slowly, the tension in her shoulders lifting now that everything has returned to normal. This is the usual Riko, not the oddly alluring one in the dream.
“Do not fret. You will be fine, Riko-san. Just be yourself. You are guilty enough already.”
“Eh?”
“Nothing,” Dia purses her lips, annoyed that she almost lets something slip. “I think this is a good idea. Keep trying until you are used to it.”
“You think so?” Riko seems to perk up at her approval.
“Yes. I myself used to get stage fright - in fact, I often hid behind Kanan-san and Mari-san. But I kept practicing, speaking in front of people, and more people, until I do not even think about it.”
“Stage fright? I find that hard to imagine,” Riko smiles uncertainly. “You always seem so confident. But okay, I will um, I will just be myself…”
Even as she says that, her arms are still wrapped around her exposed midriff.
“Just try not to think about what makes you feel self-conscious,” Dia chuckles at that, endeared. “What do you feel? How has this outfit changed you?”
School idols are amazing, and this is one of the countless reasons. By donning a special outfit, you feel empowered, that no obstacles can stand in your way. Even the most timid girl would receive the courage she needs to just be herself, to just express her love for school idols.
“How I feel-?” Riko quirks an eyebrow thoughtfully, her arms slowly loosening around her midriff. “Hmm, well, I want to…”
Suddenly, she marches towards Dia, who instinctively takes a step back only to be trapped against the wall. The sense of déjà vu overwhelms Dia, even though Riko is at her usual height unlike the version in the dream.
And this is not a dream. This is actually happening.
Riko casually places her hand beside Dia’s head, smiling as she gently caresses her chin. “I want to do this, Dia-san. What do you think? What… should I do next?”
Gazing deeply into those playful amber eyes, Dia already knows what her answer is.
