Rating: T+

Pairings (yaoi/yuri): Nezumi x Shion, Kai x Rin, onesided!Christian x Aster, onesided!Black x Aster, Nath x Dylan, onesided!Drew x Aster, Ace x Shun, onesided!Thomas x Shion, Kureno x Megumi, onesided!Aria x Senna

Pairings (hetero): Takao x Inukashi, Shun x Nami, Hikaru x Kaori, Hayden x Pia, Edward x Elizabeth, onesided!Shion x Safu, implied!Riku x Hilary, Haru x Natasha, onesided!Nezumi x Elle, Ritsu x Serenity, Haruko x Riku, Arwyn x Rowan, onesided!Valen x Aria, past!Marc x Jenna

Warnings: OOCness, OCs (and loads of them, haha), rantings from a mad author, (very) inconsistent updates, implied sexual content, crossdressing, serious topics addressed such depression, abuse, rape, self-harm, etc., grammatical errors and no beta.

Disclaimer: Whims of Anime does not own No. 6 or Beyblade (I'm only borrowing Kai, to be honest), only the plot and the OCs. They belong to their rightful owners. Please support the official release.

Dedication: To nezushijustwantstobefree, cause it's her birthday! To all those that read, favorite, follow and comment. This shitty author apologizes to everyone that awaits a new chapter like they wait for reunion (I'm flattering myself, though).

Previously on DRAMA Is Now In Session: After being forced to crossdress as part of game of Never Have I Ever in their counseling sessions, Nezumi, Rin, Aya and Megumi, alongside Shion, Aster, Nami, Hikaru, Shun, Kaori, Riku, Aria, Takao and Inukashi go out and decide to watch a movie. Accompanying them is the mysterious Senna, a close friend of Rin's that can see the ghosts of Natasha and Haru, the parents of Rin that haunt Shion. Meanwhile, Ryoko, Nezumi's rival/enemy is going through some shit as she's being hunted down by a man named Noto who has done some shit and whose motivations are unclear. What happens now?

Anime: Yeah . . . Sorry. That is all. I'll try to be better? To be honest, this school year was crazy. It was my last year in high school so I was pretty busy. Now that I'm in university, I hope that I'll be responsible enough to update. Well, to the chapter!

~~~DINIS~~~

Quote of the Day:

"If it's possible for one person to be hurt by another, then it's possible for that person to be healed by another."

- Hatori Sohma (Fruits Basket)

~~~DINIS~~~

10: House of Cards

Artemis cooed in her hands and it was an adorable action that caused Ryoko to smile. She winced shortly after, blood coming out of her sides. It hurt to walk but she had to make it to Natalie, Nuriko and Anne. If she didn't, this wound would get infected and she could die. She couldn't go to the hospital because she was supposed to be dead and she had to avoid those men in black for as long as possible.

She looked both ways in the alley and stepped out of the shadows, just as a group of students began to enter the movie theater. She recognized the black haired, silver eyed boy dressed as a girl as Megumi. She almost called out to him until she saw Nezumi was next to him, also dressed like a girl. It suited him, oddly enough.

"Fuck." Ryoko hissed, hiding near the trashcans before she was spotted. Artemis made a sound of discomfort and she shushed the child. Marc and Jenna's child stared at her with the familiar forest-green eyes, something like annoyance flickering in his eyes. For an eight month old, Artemis was almost a genius with expressive eyes.

"Sorry, kid." Ryoko sheepishly said, smiling down at the child. She huffed as she looked back at the group, "It might be better to lay low here for a while until Nezumi is out of sight." Lord knew how much he wanted her dead.

At that moment, however, she saw black cars heading in her direction. While the group seemed to ignore them - one of the girls was pointing at a movie she wanted to watch while the others argued over other movies they could watch - they parked and got out of the car. Ryoko cursed.

She really needed to get out of here.

She took out her phone and sent a quick text to Natalie. She wrapped Artemis snug in the blanket and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead. Artemis whimpered, as if sensing she was going to do something reckless, and she sighed, "You're the next generation. Don't you dare die, Arty."

With that, Ryoko ran.

~~~DRAMA~~~

Nezumi hadn't believed that time could slow down for some people when something big happened but that was exactly what happened to him at that moment.

While Senna was insisting on watching the psychological plus gore horror movie and Kai was arguing over watching some sequel to a movie Nami's father had made and Nami was telling everyone to not watch her father's movie, Nezumi had seen Ryoko.

Ryoko was wearing some tattered grey jeans that were ripped on some parts, a black shirt that was ripped on one side and combat boots. Her trademark navy-blue hair was in a loose ponytail, the same style Aya was currently using. She was also wearing a black cap that she was using to cover most of her features, but Nezumi could never mistake her for anyone else.

She ran past them, accidently bumping into Shion. Shion paid her no mind while he asked Rin's opinion on the movies listed, but Nezumi's mind raced. That was the person he had dedicated years of his life in an attempt to kill. He hated Ryoko for all that she had done. He smiled cruelly, glad he had managed to sneak out his gun without anyone noticing.

"What do you think?" Hikaru asked him, breaking into his thoughts. At Nezumi's stare, the young man sighed, "The horror movie or Sakamoto-san's movie?"

"Horror movie." He said.

"Yes!" Senna cheered and Aria looked at her before sighing, looking incredibly starstruck, "You're outnumbered, Kai. We're watching The Demons of Lucifenia! The best part that it's based on a true story!"

"Yah, Senna-chan, don't say that!" Shun cried out, near tears. Nami giggled, patting her scared boyfriend's back. Takao squeezed Inukashi's hand as if to comfort her. She tried once again, in vain, to yank her hand away from him. That kid was crazy but he knew what he wanted, Nezumi noted. He admired him for that.

"It starts in twelve minutes. That gives us enough time to get seats, popcorn and other food." Kaori noted. She nodded, "Aster, Aya, get some snacks from the store."

"You guys go on ahead. I think I just saw Eve pass by." Nezumi lied and ran in the direction he had seen Ryoko head to. Inukashi yelled at him to say hi for her before he was out of earshot.

Megumi stared at Nezumi's back and frowned.

~~~DRAMA~~~

The men were hot in pursuit. Ryoko, however, knew these streets. These were the streets she lived in ever since she was a child, ever since she was abandoned by society and labeled as dead. No, she had known these streets even before the fire that killed her family. She knew these familiar streets. The only person that could use these streets as well as she could was-.

Someone bumped into her and the two crashed into an alley, the black cap flying off her head. Ryoko gave out a yelp of pain, landing on her wounded side. She looked up to see it was a girl with slate hair and very familiar grey eyes that were beautiful in nature. She was dressed in a black shirt that matched her grey skirt, white knee-high socks and black shoes.

Ryoko could never confuse those eyes, though. She stiffened and Nezumi smirked, "Hi, Ryoko. Long time no see." She tried to get up but Nezumi yanked her ankle and she slid closer towards him. She whimpered in pain and he kneeled down in front of her, "When was the last time we saw each other?"

It was eight months ago, something Ryoko and Nezumi both knew. The impulsive slate-haired boy had somehow found out she was going to be around the ruins of the old dojo and had attempted to shoot her in cold blood. Ryoko had lashed out, leaving Nezumi with bruised ribs and a busted lip. He was better now but she knew he held a grudge.

"Now's not the time." She whispered, "Nezumi, listen to me," She stopped, gasping for breath as it was taken from her. Nezumi was choking her and she clawed at his hands, desperate for him to release her.

"I've been waiting for years for this." Nezumi hissed.

Ryoko flailed around, hoping that Nezumi could let her go. He tightened his grip on her neck and wondered when he started seeing her as something so small. Her neck was thin and slender, almost small enough to wrap his hands completely around it.

When he had first met Ryoko, she had seem like a villain. Untouchable, powerful, cruel and dark yet young and beautiful like a lonely rose surrounded by thorns. That image of her had grown over the years, making her appear larger than life. Now, however, she looked so small, fragile, vulnerable and human.

"Stop!" She cried out before landing a blow on his stomach. He gasped out in pain, slightly out of breath. Ryoko gasped for breath at the same time before she crawled slightly away from the winded Nezumi. Just as she was about to get up, the boy yanked her ankle once more and she fell again, "Nezumi, I'm asking you to let me go!"

Ryoko kicked Nezumi right on his face. He yelled in pain and she got up rapidly. She hobbled out of the alley, looking back for a moment to see if Nezumi was alright.

That was her mistake.

When she faced forward, a gunshot rang through the streets. Her eyes grew wide, feeling a familiar pain blossom on her shoulder and she fell backwards. She hadn't been able to outrun them after all. Noto's men had come.

Nezumi watched with mixed emotions as Ryoko fell on her back, mouth open in a silent scream. He looked at the man that shot her and saw how dangerous he looked. What problems had Ryoko gotten herself into now? And why hadn't he shot Ryoko when he had the chance?

"Nez . . . umi." Ryoko gasped out, blood gushing from two places. Nezumi saw blood pooling around her from two sides, and he came to the realization that he had attacked Ryoko when she had been injured.

How pitiful he was.

Attacking and killing Ryoko was his objective but gaining that victory from her meant nothing to him if he wasn't able to kill her when she was at full strength. Killing a wounded Ryoko would have left him with a foul taste in his mouth.

"Run." Ryoko gasped out while the men grabbed her, two of them grabbing her from her arms. She looked at him and he could see the fear, pain and sorrow in her eyes. She glared at him, "You idiot, run!"

Ryoko was cold, deadly and out of reach yet beautiful, like the distant moon. She was always so emotionless whenever they saw each other and Nezumi had always wanted to inspire emotions like pain and fear onto her. He hated that he wasn't the first to ever wretch those emotions from Ryoko's cold heart.

"Hey, who's that?"

Three gunshots rang, each bullet hitting the arms of the men nearest to Ryoko and Nezumi. Ryoko slumped on the ground and Nezumi heard more yelling and gunshots. He didn't stop to listen more as he rushed to Ryoko and lifted her, "Hey! Don't die now!"

"Getting used . . . to me, huh?" Ryoko chuckled weakly, "I guess you need someone to love and to hate in this world." She looked up at him, eyes slightly gazed, "The house of cards is falling, Nezumi, and we're all, hopelessly, trapped inside. I hope that you don't live for revenge against me. I hope you've found someone to love."

"Shut up. You're babbling nonsense." Nezumi snapped before more gunshots were heard. He carried his nemesis bridal style and rushed out of the alley, where a lone gun-wielding maniac was distracting the men that wanted Ryoko dead.

Nezumi caught a glimpse of the maniac and paused slightly at how cold Megumi looked, his expressionless face looking colder than before. Even his eyes, where most of his emotions could be seen, were cold and dangerous.

After getting to know him because of the counseling sessions, Nezumi forgot that there was a reason why Megumi Rosenfield was called the deadly Winter Rose.

He didn't stay around long to look, even though he wanted to see Megumi in action. He ran, Ryoko being jostled around like a limp rag doll. She was muttering something he couldn't hear but it sounded a lot like 'Hitoshi-niisan.'

Nezumi ran and didn't look back.

~~~DRAMA~~~

Megumi had forgotten how destructive a gun was. He hadn't been sent on missions for three months and he was already going soft. Hell, it had almost felt strange to fire his inactive gun so much. He wasn't living to his reputation as the Winter Rose. He needed to remedy that problem and strike fear in the hearts of these men.

If they survived, that is.

He became a storm of bullets, the screams of the men screaming mixing with the loud gunshots in a macabre symphony. The scent of blood mixed with gun powder. Being in battle always meant that he could release his inner artist, even if that artist was slightly deranged. Torturing was fun too but nothing beat a good old-fashioned shoot-out.

"-backup! This bitch is giving us some serious problem!"

"What a horrible word." Megumi hissed as he dodged a man's punch. He jumped up a car and shot him in the chest and, as he screamed, he shot the man that had called him a bitch twice on his legs. As the blood splattered, Megumi made sure that none of it got on his clothes. These men didn't deserve to dirty his nice clothes.

"What the hell are you?" A man asked. Megumi turned his attention to him and his eyes widened in recognition. This man . . . this man . . . He remembered him from his thirteenth birthday when-.

"Let me go!" Megumi had screamed as he had been dragged into a van, several men holding him down. He cried out, wishing anyone would hear him so these men would let him go. He kicked a man in the chest, "Someone, please help me! Help-!"

"Gag him!"

"I should beat this little whore for hitting me!"

"The Boss paid two million yen to spend the night with him. Don't damage the goods." A man said before pressing a white cloth over Megumi's mouth and nose, the world becoming hazy. The men spoke some more but Megumi couldn't hear more as he blanked out.

-Kurt had sold him to some rich man to pay off a debt. He had been taken into a white van as he had been heading home from school and this man before him had been the one that had knocked him out.

Megumi's eyes narrowed as he turned his attention to the man, "Who sent you?"

"Crazy little bitch." He responded instead, "You're going to get yours. The Boss will end you." Megumi froze, knowing that the person known as 'The Boss' could only be that creepy man that had repeatedly paid his deceased step-father in order to spend time with him.

"What have you gotten yourself into, Ryoko?" Megumi muttered as he heard police sirens in the distance. He ran in the direction he had seen Nezumi go, as he also needed to get away from here.

He had things to think about.

~~~DRAMA~~~

Nezumi stopped in front of an empty lot. He really had no choice, considering that he was currently being pointed at by several guns, all of them belonging to Shadowriders that he was not friendly with.

"Hello, Rat." Kureno said with a smug look. If it weren't for the fact that he was holding a near-dead Ryoko and that Megumi would probably get upset, Nezumi would've knocked the living daylights out of him.

"Yo." He answered. Ryoko moaned in pain and that caused all of her members to narrow their eyes at him. Nezumi sighed, "Look, Mikami, I didn't do this to her. Otherwise, I would've left her for dead in the alley or I would've thrown her in a ditch."

"I want to believe that." Kureno muttered.

"You think I'd save Ryoko after trying to kill her?" Nezumi raised an eyebrow in question, "The answer should be no, if you were wondering, and I'm not the type to do anything sexual to my victims."

"I hope you realize your words mean nothing. Not when you've sworn to kill Ryoko too many times." Kureno hissed. Nezumi prepared himself to be gunned down by all the weapons targeting him.

"It's true what he says, Kureno."

Nezumi wondered when Megumi had shown up, but he found that he was glad for his entrance. He looked slightly disheveled but, despite all that he had done to those men, there wasn't a slight speck of blood in his skirt or top. He stepped forward, blocking Kureno's target.

"M-Megumi?" Kureno muttered, flushing. The other Shadowriders snorted as their weak de-facto leader was left flailing around when his boyfriend was dressed in a short skirt and knee-high socks. He covered his flushed face, "You-you're def-defending him? The leader of the Deathrunners, the one who tries to kill Ryoko at every opportunity?"

"I'm defending Nezumi Hosoya, a close friend that I happen to have a group counseling session with." Megumi stated, looking back at Nezumi. His eyes were twinkling, the closest thing he had to a smile. He nodded, "I saw the situation. I vouch for his innocence. In fact, he brought Ryoko here when the others were willing to take her elsewhere for who knows what reason."

"Guess so." Arine replied, lowering her guns. The others did the same, Kureno being the last one to do so. Megumi bowed at them, radiating relief.

"Take her, then." Nezumi said, lowering the limp Ryoko. She whimpered, not even moving as she was laid down. Nezumi looked at his bloodied shirt and sighed, "I am supposed to watch a movie and, thanks to her, my shirt is ruined."

"Here."

He was shocked as Mikako tossed her black jacket at him. She winked, "You need it more than I do, I think."

"T-thanks." Nezumi said, feeling taken aback by her kind gesture. He put it on, zipping it up to hide his dirty clothes. He grabbed Megumi's hand, ignoring Kureno's glare, "Let's go. I think we need to watch a movie."

"Yup." Megumi nodded, the two heading back to the cinema. As soon as they were out of earshot, Megumi bit his lower lip, "I wonder why Ryoko was being attacked. What did she do?"

"Good question." Nezumi muttered. Ryoko only ever had problems with the police and Deathrunners and those encounters never led to her getting that badly injured. Then what had actually happened? Megumi squeezed his hand, forcing the two to stop.

"About what you did back there . . . Thanks, Nezumi." Megumi stated, although the apology sounded weak, "I know that you don't like Ryoko so what you did for her was . . . nice. And honorable."

"I suppose I should thank you for helping me." Nezumi said.

Megumi's eyes gleamed oddly, "I do have a high opinion of you, Nezumi. I won't lie about that. However," Before Nezumi could blink, Megumi had him at gunpoint with the same look he had been wearing when he had been shooting the men, "don't forget who we are. You're the leader of the Deathrunners, the Rat, and I am the Winter Rose of the Shadowriders. A true friendship between us can't exist so long as Ryoko is your enemy. As much as I would like to be your friend, I won't be your ally if you wish to hurt my savior. Ryoko is someone special to me. If you kill her, I won't care if we have a bond of friendship. I won't hesitate to put a bullet through your head."

"And here I was forgetting how maniacal you are," Nezumi answered in a tone that was just as cold and calculating, "I haven't forgotten anything, trust me. And if I have to kill you in order to get my vengeance, then so be it. No one shall stand in my path, Rose."

The two silently stared at each other, neither making a move. Megumi broke eye contact first as he hid his gun. He nodded, his eyes twinkling, "Glad we could come to some agreement, Nezumi. I hope you're as good an actor as you are a singer."

"Perhaps I should be saying that to you, Megumi," Nezumi retorted. The two continued to walk, this time with a foot of distance from the other. The way they walked reflected their awkward tension so the men that saw them as they walked back to the theater were reluctant to speak to them.

"I lived most of my life living a lie. I can be civil towards you." He finally said as they rounded a corner leading to the theater. Megumi paused as they finally spotted the rest of the group speaking and ready to enter the theater. He turned to Nezumi, "Don't speak of this to the Professor. He wants to help us and speaking of this will drag him into our world."

"Obviously I won't tell Shion." Nezumi rolled his eyes, wishing that he was comfortable enough with Megumi to smack the back of his head, "Who do you think I am to be that big of an idiot? I don't want any of them to know."

"Especially Shion, right? Because you don't want to hurt him."

Nezumi frowned at that comment, facing the feminine male who was staring straight ahead with his usual poker face, "What?" Really, was there something wrong with the boy?

"Ryoko told me that we keep secrets from the ones we love to protect them. So they won't get hurt. Isn't that what you want to do with Shion? Keep him in ignorance so he won't be hurt?" Megumi looked down, his eyes looking at the ground sadly, "I know that Kureno hides things from me all the time when he thinks it'll hurt me. I hate it when he does that but I understand that he does it because he loves me. So you don't want to drag Shion to our world because you love him, right?"

"Shion and I are rivals," Nezumi snapped out, with more venom than he intended, as he glared down at the other. Megumi flinched and looked up at him, staring at him with those blank eyes that revealed none of his thoughts. Nezumi decided that he hated Megumi's expressionless gaze more than anything at this moment. He looked away, "There's no love between the two of us."

"I hate liars." Megumi answered curtly, looking away from Nezumi with a pout, "Especially those that are attempting to deceive themselves too. You have feelings for Shion. Don't try to convince me otherwise." He walked forward with all the grace of a royal. He lifted his hand and waved, announcing to the others his return.

Nezumi walked behind him, staring at Shion and contemplating Megumi's words. He didn't love Shion. He knew that. The two had been rivals since childhood, ever since his compliment to Shion was taken as an insult. He'd buried all romantic feelings in order to be as powerful as the detached and cold Ryoko.

"I hope that you don't live for revenge against me. I hope you've found someone to love."

What a strange thing to wish your rival, Nezumi thought to himself as he recalled Ryoko's words. He didn't need to find someone to love in that regard. He didn't need love.

"Come on, Nezumi," Shion sighed, extending his hand out to him, "The movie's about to start in four minutes and I want to see the trailers."

No, he wouldn't fall for Shion, no matter what everyone whispered to him.

He would not fall.

"I hate liars."

~~~DRAMA~~~

Shion entered the theater with Nezumi right behind him. They sat down in one of the top rows of the theater, Shion looking excitedly at the previews playing. Natasha and Haru hung behind him excitedly, the two having developed a love for horror movies since their deaths.

Rin sat down to Shion's right and Kai sat down to Rin's right. Aria sat down to Nezumi's left and Senna sat down to her left. Inukashi sat down in front of them with Takao to her right. To Takao's right were Hikaru and Kaori while to Inukashi's left was Shun and Nami. Aya and Riku sat to Kai's left and Megumi and Aster sat to Senna's left.

"Kit Kat?" Senna asked Aria, holding the king-sized bar of chocolate they had contrabanded into the theater. Aria took it excitedly. Kaori was passing snacks along the other row. Shion noted that Kai took away all of Rin's sugar-laced snacks and wondered why that was.

"Good call, Kai." Natasha muttered, "That boy can't handle his sugar well."

"Did someone say something?" Senna asked, frowning as she turned to look around. Natasha and Haru ducked down just as she was about to face them. Again, Shion had forgotten that the strange girl that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere could see spirits.

"You're hearing things? What a shocker." Kai mumbled, only for Rin to smack him and try to steal his snacks. With incredible reflexes, Kai caught Rin's hands and tossed the snacks to Aya. Rin outright pouted and tried to grab them from the blonde girl. Aya tossed them to Hikaru, who opened one of the bags and proceeded to eat its contents.

Rin almost whined before turning to complain to, surprisingly, Nezumi. He pulled a great puppy face as he complained, "Nezumi, look at how they treat me."

"Don't fall for it, Hosoya." Kai warned.

"He is terrible when there's sugar in his system." Aya warned.

"There was this one time after the wedding that Rin decided to make a scene in a restaurant." Hikaru whispered, as if telling a ghost story around a campfire, "Kai had been incredibly cheesy with him the whole night so Rin decided to him some 'sugar'. He asked for the chocolate cake and downed it so fast that we were surprised he didn't have an unhingeable jaw. Next thing we know, Rin is aggressively singing to Guren no Yumiya in one of the chandeliers and almost stripped. When we got him down, he screamed something about mice and horses and destroyed lots of plates and glasses before we subdued him in the car. To this day, we're still banned from that restaurant."

"I am not like that." Rin said but the looks on his close friends faces said otherwise. Aster chuckled and Takao mumbled something to Inukashi. Shion sighed, wishing for the days when things weren't so hectic.

"Then I suppose I won't give you anything sugary." Nezumi said. As they all faced the screen, Nezumi stretched his arm and placed it on Shion's shoulder. While Shion froze and wondered if Nezumi was coming onto him, Rin greedily took the gummy worms Nezumi was offering him. Rin ate them before Kai could take notice and he grinned at Nezumi, who winked back. It was the start of a friendship, the duo thought to themselves.

"Um," Shion tapped Nezumi's thigh, "Mind getting your arm off me?"

Nezumi stared at the white haired boy and almost laughed at how red he was. He shook his head, "Nah. I feel comfortable like this. Don't you?"

Honestly, it was comfortable. It was just awkward to Shion to have this type of skinship with his currently crossdressing rival. He looked down, trying to forget that Nezumi had an arm around his shoulders in a very couple-like pose.

Shion decided to ignore the small beats of his heart and decided to concentrate on the movie trailers. He always enjoyed watching them, sometimes spending half an hour in YouTube in order to see foreign movie trailers. He mostly tried to figure out the movie's end and secrets while watching trailers, although he was still surprised whenever he went to watch the actual movie.

The movie trailer he was viewing was about a fictional mass cleansing of magical people, with the main character hiding a sorceress with a beautiful voice. It certainly looked interesting. Maybe he should watch that one.

The next trailer - about four boys becoming a group of assassins and uncovering a dark plot in regards to the company they were employed under - was largely ignored by Shion when Nezumi tapped his thigh. Shion turned to him, "What?"

"I'm bored."

Shion raised an eyebrow, "So? I'm trying to watch the trailers."

"Why? They ruin the movie." Nezumi inputted. Shion rolled his eyes as Nezumi continued, "I'm honest. The best parts are in the trailers. I bet this movie is going to suck."

"I bet it's going to be good." Shion replied.

"Really?" Nezumi asked, facing forward. Seeing it was going to come out in November, Nezumi smirked, "Wanna bet?"

"Yeah." Shion nodded, "It has Amano Shoya as one of the leads. And Kido Takuya, too. They're some of my favorite up and coming actors. Shoya managed to get an award for best supporting actor in LoveLess, the best film of last year."

"Amano Shoya is so overrated." Nezumi yawned, "Besides, he comes out in this movie as the lead, right?" He groaned, "I'd rather wear these clothes all year than to say that he's a great actor."

"Don't be an asshole. Shoya is a great actor. You're just jealous that he's our age and he's more famous than you." Shion huffed. Nezumi rolled his eyes, looking away. He looked rather annoyed but Shion didn't care. Nezumi was just a hater, anyways. Shoya was pretty cool.

"Whatever. If the movie sucks, I can do whatever I want with you and vice versa. Deal?" Nezumi stated, looking rather annoyed.

"Deal."

The next trailer was one that even managed to captivate Nezumi. It was based on the Story of Evil play that was roughly based on the reign of the Son of Evil, a bloody monarch that had only been fifteen. The main characters were the Son of Evil, the Servant of Evil, the Gray Prince, the Girl of Green, the Girl of White and the Red Swordswoman.

Everyone knew the play. It was required reading in Weston, like Romeo and Juliet, the Great Gatsby, Jane Eyre, Journey to the West, To Kill A Mockingbird, Lord of the Flies, The Tale of Four Kings, The Catcher in the Rye, A Brave New World, The Kingdom of the Solitary Queen, Paradise Lost, the Crucible, Gulliver's Travels and Don Quixote.

The story was about a spoiled prince that got everything he desired, given to him by his twin brother that became his servant due to conflicts in regards to the throne. The prince didn't care about his people, preferring to live a lavish life and ignoring the pleas of the people. Those that crossed him were eliminated by his servant, who did his younger brother's bidding without a second thought.

The play chronicled the tragic events that came to pass due to the Son of Evil's selfish and spoiled nature and the Servant of Evil's selfless nature and his love for his brother. It was so sad, in Shion's opinion. A tragic tale showing what pride could lead to.

There was a supposed sequel to the Story of Evil that chronicled the futures of the Servant and Son of Evil but it was lost long ago. Shion turned to Nezumi, "Trailers suck, huh?"

"Shut up. It's the Story of Evil." Nezumi replied.

Shion chuckled, facing forward. They watched the trailer in peace, Nezumi smirking when he noticed that Rin looked a bit jittery. Kai looked at Rin in confusion. Rin looked ready to run around the theater, something that amused the crossdressing slate haired male.

"It's starting." Takao muttered to Inukashi, leaning closer than necessary to whisper it to her. She flushed and muttered something that was lost in a wave of 'shhs.'

The movie was interesting, Nezumi thought to himself. He wasn't going to admit that the dolls in the movie terrified him, not when Shion was sitting next to him. He was so distracted that, when he looked at the screen to see the movie, one of the dolls had gotten up from the mud. He jumped, clutching the arm rest.

Strange, he thought to himself. Were armrests always this warm?

"Nezumi, you scaredy-cat." Shion hissed. Nezumi looked to see that he was actually holding Shion's hand. Thanks to the lighting of the movie, Nezumi could see the faintest of blushes on Shion's cheeks. It was . . . oddly adorable.

"I hate dolls." Nezumi admitted. It was a random childhood fear he possessed that his parents were baffled by. He looked away, "I was never able to stand them."

Shion stared at Nezumi and smiled. He squeezed his hand, "Never thought this movie would get you to admit things you haven't even said during the counseling sessions."

"Fear usually does that." Nezumi admitted. He faced forward, seeing the mother being horrified by the realization that the dolls were alive. He didn't know why he was admitting this to Shion or why it felt right to be holding Shion's hand. He sighed, unsure why he was feeling this way.

I hope you've found someone to love."

He could not fall for Shion. He refused to fall in love.

No matter what his heart was saying.

~~~DINIS~~~

Anime: So this is the first chapter of DRAMA of 2018 *airhorn noises* and I'm going to try to update a bit more regularly now. I'm not making promises, though. Let me know what you think by dropping a review. I really enjoy those. So, I hope to see you all in the next chapter.

**Notes for Chapter 10**

*The chapter name was chosen for many reasons. The first reason is the meaning: a structure or argument built on a shaky foundation or one that will collapse if a necessary element is removed. The second reason is House of Cards by BTS. The third reason is that it fits what's going to happen in the chapter as the other chapter titles have done before.

*I apologize for this slowburn!Nezushi fic that I am shit at updating. Luckily, I've finished FBW and Trick and Treat so this is currently my priority fanfic to update. Woohoo!

*Why am I making cuter moments for the side ships? (Maybe cause our leads are currently idiots that refuse to say they're in love?)

*Contraband food into the theaters. Don't pay too much for the food in the theater. Enjoy this PSA

*I love platonic!NezumixRin (aka Rizumi) so much

*Rin gets sugar-high. Go figure

*The movies mentioned in this chapter were mostly based on fanfics and original stories I have or am working on. They include: Trick and Treat, The Black Jokers and the Story of Evil one-shots

*The books mentioned are mostly classics or books that were required reading in my school. There are only two books that were made up: The Tale of Four Kings and the Kingdom of the Solitary Queen by Hao Kuon.

*Woop woop, more on my No. 6 fanfic universe. Story of Evil-Trick and Treat-DINIS

*Nezumi is scared of dolls because of his previous life as Trick and Treat!Nezumi who went through some shit. He's also just a scaredy-cat because I want Shion to be braver (Shion was practically raised by ghosts)

*The plot thickens in regards to the Ryoko side-story while NezuShi and friends just watch movies

*Off topic but Nezumi and Shion were No. 3 in Watchmojo's Top 10 LGBT Romances in Anime. They lost only to Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune (No. 2) and Yuri and Viktor (THE WINNERS AT No. 1!). Them being in the top 3 made me get to writing this, When the Bullets Fly (TBA) and Children's War (8.21.2018)