Liar, Liar, the Mage's Desire Vol. 1 (A New Oumeno)

It's On, Leon! (3)

     The next day in math class, Himiko excused herself to go use the bathroom. The truth was that she didn't really have to go. She knew that Leon was ditching whatever class he had at the time, and was always standing near the bathrooms, which were placed next to the History classroom. Himiko thought it was weird that he was always at that particular spot, but after what Ibuki told her the night before, she realized that Leon had picked that spot because it was near the classroom that Sayaka was in. As she rounded the corner on her way to the bathroom, she could see Leon discreetly peeking through the window of the door. Himiko scoffed to herself. Leon must have heard her because he looked up at her and gave her an impudent grin. Himiko ignored him and headed into the girls' bathroom. She stayed for a while to make it seem like she was actually using the bathroom, but in reality, she was going over her plan in her head. Taking a deep breath, she headed back out. Just as she'd expected, Leon made a snarky remark, and threw a crumpled-up piece of paper at her.

   "Keep walkin,' freak!" he said after throwing the paper at her. Usually, Himiko would walk away fast, trying to hide her tears in, but today, she felt confident, and ready to take on Leon. She did an about-face, and smirked at him.

   "You know, Leon, you might wanna back off," she said. "I don't think Sayaka would appreciate you picking on me." A brief look of shock flashed across Leon's face, but he kept his composure.

  "Pffft...what are you talking about, dumbass?" he asked. 

   "Sa-ya-ka..." Himiko enunciated. "You know, the girl you're so madly in love with?" Leon looked at her with shock and anger.

   "How did...who...who told you that?" he demanded in a furious whisper. 

    "Nobody," Himiko lied, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. "Nobody had to tell me anything. It's just so clearly written all over your face." Leon stared at her, his mouth agape. "I could tell her all about you bullying me," Himiko continued, ignoring Leon's expression. "I could also tell her that you pine for her...and stalk her, like you're doing right now."

   "You wouldn't dare!" Leon spat. 

    "Well, how else is she going to find out that you like her?" Himiko asked. "Or do you plan on spending the rest of your life sad and lonely?" 

  "How she'll find out is none of your business!" Leon growled. "Stay out of my life!"

   "Weelll...if that's what you want," Himiko sighed. "Sayaka was planning on going with Rantaro to the dance this Saturday, anyways, so honestly, it doesn't matter what you do. You'll just end up being a dateless loser." She turned on her heel and began to walk away.

   "W-Wait!" Leon shouted after her. Himiko felt her heart beat wildly with excitement. She had him in the palm of her hand! Trying to keep her smirk from showing, she turned around, trying to appear aloof.

   "Yes?" she asked with her hands clasped politely in front of her. 

   "D-Do...you have a way of asking her out for me?" Leon muttered sheepishly. Himiko brought a finger to her lips in thought.

   "We-eeell...I'm sure you recall the Not-Your-Talent Show a few months ago?" she asked. Leon nodded. "Well, then you would know that I was in that band with Sayaka. We kinda became close after that. I was thinking that maaaybe since Rantaro and I live in the same dorm, I could convince him not to go to the dance, and maayyybe I could get Sayaka to sing a duet with you, since, y'know...you want to be a singer just like her, right?"

  "How did you know that?" Leon asked, eyeing her suspiciously. 

   "Oh, well...I thought it was already a well-known fact," Himiko shrugged. "Especially since you give off that punk-y appearance. It definitely doesn't seem to suit your current talent." Leon just stared at her in confusion. Before he could say anything, Himiko went on. "Aaanyhoo...it was just an offer. You can take it, or leave it. But if you leave it...no Sayaka for you!" 

  "Something feels weird here," Leon muttered. "Did Kokichi put you up to this?"

  "Pfftt...please! Kokichi has better things to do than to waste his time on a worthless peasant such as yourself," Himiko replied haughtily and waving her hand dismissively at him. Leon was taken aback by her words.

  "Well...what's in it for you?" he asked quietly. "Why are you helping me?" Himiko stood in her Supreme Lady pose; she stood tall, crossed her arms, put her feet together, and turned away from him at a slight angle with her chin held up high, as if she were an actual queen talking down to her subject.

   "This is more of a favor to Sayaka than it is to you," she replied. "I only picked you to be her partner because I know you like her, and also because she wants to sing a duet with a guy who can at least carry a tune. This way, you win the heart of your dream girl, she gets to sing the duet like she wanted, everyone is happy!"

   "Even you?" Leon asked.

   "Well, I should hope so," Himiko replied. "After all, I'm sure you'll be busy with Sayaka rather than trying to pick on me all the time. If not, well...I guess it just goes to show what a pathetic loser you are." Leon blinked in surprise at her words.

  "S-So, you're doing all of this just to get me to stop picking on you?" he stuttered. 

  "Oh, not at all," she replied, lowering her head as she lifted her brow and gave him a knowing smirk. "This is all for Sayaka's sake, like I said."

   "Oh, well...if it's all for Sayaka, then that's fine," Leon said. "I'd do anything to make her happy."

  "I'm glad to hear it," Himiko replied. "So...do we have a deal?"

  "Yeah, yeah...I guess," Leon replied. 

  "Excellent," said Himiko. She turned and walked back to math class with a devious smirk and exhilaration coursing through her veins.