~ Chishiya's pov ~
Chishiya was angry, how could she do something so stupid? Now Takara was on Hatter's watchlist, which is exactly what he didn't want to happen.
He needed Takara to be at Hatter's side, obedient to his rules. But she had to go and ruin that by being a good person.
He didn't understand her, why would she help people without getting something in return? She had a good heart, and that good heart was making her a target.
Going to confront her as soon as he heard what she had done probably wasn't the best idea. But he had thought that maybe his harsh words would get through to her. He was wrong.
He didn't have many options on how to resolve this issue she had caused, the only thing he could do now was try and calm Hatter's paranoia somehow. That itself would be no easy task. But if anyone could stand a chance at manipulating Hatter, it was Chishiya.
He racked his brain on what to do, starting to pace back and forth in Takara's empty room. There would be an executive meeting that evening, and Takara would most likely be on topic. Chishiya's best shot at saving Takara would be during that meeting.
Piece by piece, an idea formed in his mind. He left Takara's room, making sure to close the door as he left, and headed up to his own room.
An hour or so passed since he had left Takara's room, and Chishiya started to head downstairs for the meeting. He had a clear plan on how to help Takara, and he knew exactly what to say to persuade Hatter out of his paranoid state.
As Chishiya entered the meeting, he noted how no militants had been called to join, which meant whatever they were to talk about would be something that Hatter didn't want the other faction to hear.
The rest of the executives were already seated when Chishiya walked into the room, making him take the last seat left at the table.
The meeting started off with general updates from Kuzuryu about the daily affairs of the beach, just like how every other meeting went. Chishiya tried to appear as if he was interested in what the man had to say, when in reality, he couldn't care less about the man's ramblings. He knew it would look strange if he only spoke up when they eventually brought up Takara, so he added his input here and there so he wouldn't cause suspicion.
Finally, Hatter cleared his throat to change the subject, making Chishiya sit a little straighter in his seat.
"Now, as you may have all heard, one of our newer members, Takara, brought back a handful of players to stay here at the Beach. And she did so without my permission or even informing me about it" He took an inhale of breath, seemingly irritated over the subject.
"She's a good player, going back into the depths of a game to save people out of the goodness of her own heart. And she seems to inspire hope in the hearts of my people, which could potentially overpower the hold I have over them"
"If people start to look to her as their leader instead of me, it'll become a problem. It already is a problem." He glanced over to each of the executives.
"I would like some suggestions on how to handle her," he breathed out.
There was a beat of silence, the executives thinking of an answer.
"Would it not be best to stamp out any uprisings before they begin?" Kuzuryu replied nonchalantly.
Hatter nodded, seemingly in thought. He rested his head in one of his hands, rubbing his temples.
"That's quite extreme Kuzuryu. A stern talking to and setting clear boundaries should put her back in her place" Ann spoke, adjusting her sunglasses after her statement.
Chishiya saw this as his cue to chime in.
Chishiya cleared his throat, leaning forward slightly. Everyone at the table looked at him, now was his chance.
"This girl, she has potential, so why waste it? She's good at the games, she's bringing you in new cards, and your people like her." He tried to make it sound like he barely knew her, that his opinion was unbiased.
"You were already planning on making her an executive, or so I hear. So I'd suggest keeping her close, get her to work for you. If she inspires your people, then you want to be able to use that to your advantage." He paused, leaning back into his seat.
"And then if she still acts in a way you don't like after that, then you kill her." He shrugged.
Hatter was soaking in his words, nodding slowly.
"You might be onto something Chishiya" he pointed at Chishiya, a smirk forming on his face.
"I agree, she might be useful. She is still hopeful in a cruel world like this. It's admirable." Mira said with a gleeful smile painted on her face.
Chishiya didn't quite understand why Mira would agree with him, but he was slightly relieved he had someone else on his side.
"I'll speak with her tomorrow" Hatter declared, his mood quickly shifting.
As the meeting went onto a different topic, Chishiya could only think about what he had just achieved. It appeared that Hatter was leaning more into sparing Takara, which was exactly what he wanted.
It was now down to Takara to say the right thing when she meets with Hatter, but Chishiya was sure that she'd say the right thing to save herself.
What he had just done for her was unexplainable. He would never go to these lengths to help another person, to stop someone other than himself from dying. But for Takara, something about her made it seem worth it to him.
He would tell himself that it was just for the plan, that he'd do anything for his plan. But deep down inside, he knew there was another reason. He just couldn't find it in him to admit it.
~ Takara's pov ~
Takara had awoken early the next morning, the same nightmare she had had the previous night had come back again. Her face had been damp with tears when she awoke, making her sit up and hug her knees to calm herself down from her tormenting dreams.
She had been trying to shake the dream by having a quiet, peaceful morning to herself when she was interrupted by a knock at her door. She felt like there wasn't a day where someone hadn't been knocking on her door.
"Aren't I popular?" she mumbled to herself, heading towards her door.
Expecting either Kuina or Daichi to be waiting on the other side of the door, Takara was surprised at who she saw standing there.
"Hello miss, Hatter requires you in the executives room again"
Takara gulped. Why would Hatter want to see her again? She had only seen him the other day. Chishiya's words replayed in her head, was he right? Did Hatter want to see her because she brought people back to the Beach?
She sighed, there wasn't much she could do either way. If she didn't see him, he would most likely send someone after her to kill her for being a betrayer. But if she did go to see him, and he was angry that she inspired players more than him, he could just kill her himself. Her fate was more or less sealed at this point.
"Okay, I'll head straight there," Takara replied to the girl, closing the door on her to get dressed.
Her best bet was to try and convince him she's not a threat, that she brought those people back with good intentions. But there was no way of telling how he might react.
Once she had changed into a bikini top and shorts, she headed down to the bottom floor to meet with Hatter. Like always, as she stood outside the executive's room, she took a deep breath before entering.
The first thing Takara noticed when she entered the room was the presence of some militants. She had guessed Hatter had been in a meeting with them before calling for her, but it made her a little more anxious that they remained in the room. Had they actually been called to kill there to her during the meeting?
She tried to calm herself, she couldn't keep thinking of the worst. Hatter seemed to like Takara, so she only hoped he liked her enough to keep her alive.
Hatter, as he always did, sat at the head of the long table. To his left sat the head of the militants, Aguni, Kuina had told Takara a little bit about him. As well as Aguni, two other militants sat at the table, as well as an executive who had glasses on.
"It seems we keep meeting lately doesn't it?" Hatter chuckled. He seemed to be in a good mood, which looked promising for Takara.
She laughed slightly as well, trying to distract herself from her erratic thoughts.
"Take a seat dear, you shouldn't be standing too long with an injury like that" he pointed at Takara's bandage wrapped around her waist.
Takara nodded, grabbing the chair in front of her and slowly sitting down.
There was an eerie silence in the room, making Takara fiddle with the loose threads on her black shorts. She looked up from her shorts to see Hatter staring directly at her, an unreadable expression on his face.
"Now I've heard, and seen, you brought a lot of new people back to the beach after your last game. And yet you did all of this without checking it through with me" he paused, his eyes not leaving Takara.
Takara nodded. The eye contact with Hatter was making her feel slightly uncomfortable, but breaking it may make her look suspicious.
"I just wanted to know your reasoning for this" his tone became a lot more serious, Takara knew what he was thinking.
He was trying to get information out of her, deciding on whether to declare her as a threat to his title.
Takara thought about what to say, her life depended on how she worded her next statement.
"Honestly Hatter, I believe coming to the beach saved my life. I don't think I would've survived out there on my own for much longer."
"And after my game finished, I saw all these people in the same state as me before I came here. I wanted to share with them what you gave to me." She may have exaggerated a little in her statement, but she hoped her words would charm him.
Takara decided on playing into his narcissism to help her cause even more.
"You saved me, Hatter. What you've created here, it's kept me alive. So why not save a few more people in your name." Takara cringed internally at herself.
"And of course I should have come to you about what I did, but my injuries wouldn't allow me to come and speak to you personally. I'll make sure this won't happen again"
She could tell that her going over his head to bring the people back was something that bothered him the most, so finishing off with a promise to not do it again was probably a good idea.
Takara was quite proud of her speech, and by the look on Hatter's face, it had worked.
"You are a wonderful girl Takara. I believe what you have said is true"
Takara felt relieved, she had won him over.
"You're bold, you make interesting choices." While he spoke, it looked like he was deeply thinking about something.
He didn't say anything for a moment, holding his chin in his hand with his pointer finger tapping against his face.
"I think I've made my decision a little earlier than I anticipated." He lent back in his chair, looking quite confident about whatever his decision was.
"Takara, I'd like you to be an executive"
Takara's jaw dropped slightly, this was the least of what she was expecting him to say. Aguni's head snapped to Hatter in confusion, the other militants in the room equally as shocked.
"Really?!" Takara said, still in disbelief. She knew he was thinking about promoting her, but she never thought he would actually do it.
Hatter just nodded in reply, looking pretty smug.
"Thank you" she said sincerely.
"The next meeting is a week from now, I expect to see you there" he informed her.
Takara nodded, starting to rise from her seat. She was about to head off when Hatter's voice cut through the silence.
"Be careful now. If anything like this happens again, I'll start thinking you're planning to start a revolt on me" his booming laugh filled Takara ears, but she could tell in his voice that he was becoming a little paranoid.
"Trust me, that'll never happen" she gave him a genuine smile, trying to soothe his paranoia.
She thanked Hatter and the rest of them in the room before walking out. One of the militants was instructed to open the door for her which she was grateful for, the door was heavy even on days where she wasn't injured. The door slammed behind her just as it always did, Takara took a moment to stand there and process what had just happened.
She had entered the room thinking she was about to get executed, and she left with a promotion to be an executive? She couldn't believe it.
"What an eventful morning" she muttered to herself, heading back towards her room.
~
Hey everyone, another update woohoo
It's been a while since I've done a Chishiya pov what did everyone think? Should I include more of them?
I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on the last few chapters, feedback is always great to hear!
I'm in my last week of uni and then first year is finished! So I'll be able to focus on updating more regularly :)
Anyways I hope everyone is having a great day wherever you are in the world, until next time <3