Vil visibly shakes. "No..."
"Whoa!" Kalim exclaims. "Vil, hold it together!"
Deuce steps closer to the shocked boy. "Steady, sir! Here, hold onto my shoulder."
Vil ignores them, he clenches his fists and narrows his eyes. It looks like Vil is about to explode. You gently place a hand to his arm.
"Vil?"
The boy relaxes, you're seemingly the only one able to keep him calm. Vil places a hand over yours and holds it tightly.
Ace throws a glare at Rook. "Are you nuts, Rook? Why did you vote for Royal Sword Academy?"
"I don't believe you!" Epel shouts. "Why'd ya do somethin' so boneheaded?"
"I told you." Rook states. "I simply couldn't lie to myself. Neige's group believed in themselves and each other when they danced and sang. When I saw them up there, they struck me as powerful... and as the fairest of all in that exact moment."
Vil lets go of your hand and runs a hand through his hair. He turns away from Rook, not wanting to look at him.
Rook slowly approaches him. "Vil. Nobody should believe in your beauty more than you yourself. It is most becoming, the way you maintain such rigid self restraint while polishing yourself to triumph over your rival. But as long as you lack conviction, no amount of validation from the rest of the world will ever leave you fulfilled. Even if you wind up old, emaciated, grimy, and stooped over."
Rook places a hand to Vil's shoulder but he shrugs it off. Vil walks away to stand closer to you.
"If you were to truly believe that you are the fairest of all despite that, even the Magic Mirror of legend wouldn't contest your claim." Rook continues. "The strength and pride to believe in yourself is what marks the true fairest one of all. Roi du Poison. Fair Vil. I implore you to believe in yourself more than anyone else. Beauty is always with you. At this exact moment, you are the fairest one of all."
You softly smile. "Everything he said is true, Vil. So until you can do it for yourself, just know that I will always believe that you're amazing."
You gently wrap your arms around Vil. Him being used to your hugs by now, returns the gesture. Vil holds you close, letting out a shuddering breath.
"Vi!"
The sound of footsteps races towards you. Vil pulls away and is surprised to see Neige rushing towards him.
"Neige?"
The raven haired boy comes to a stop. "Vi, I've never seen you cry outside of an acting role before."
Vil looks away and uses a hand to wipe away the tears. "Well, you caught me at a bad time." He sadly chuckles. "I'm always second to you."
"Maybe that's what the numbers said." Neige takes a step closer. "But you guys gave an amazing performance that nobody else could have pulled off. Sure, I took first at the competition. But your group is number one in the hearts of everybody who voted for you."
Neige smiles brightly. "So c'mon, Vi. Don't cry!"
"The Roi des Neiges is right." Rook agrees. "Your smile is far more becoming than your tears, Vil. Here. Take my handkerchief."
Vil takes the handkerchief from Rook. "Thanks."
Neige looks to Rook. "Ah, you're the one who flagged me down before opening time. Your name is Rook, right?"
"Oui. My apologies for rushing you."
"You're 'R', aren't you?" Neige tilts his head. "The one who comes to every single one of my meet-and-greets and writes me letters?"
Everyone's eyes widen, looking to Rook in complete shock. Rook sheepishly rubs the back of his neck. "How did you know?"
"There's only one fan of mine who writes letters addressing me as a fancy name like Roi des Neiges." Neige laughs. "It hit me when you called me that earlier. I knew R buys each of my photos at fan events and composes poems to share their impressions of each picture. But I certainly wasn't expecting R to be a man. I was so surprised!"
Deuce runs a hand through his hair. "What? Rook's a fan of Neige LeBlanche?"
"Dude," Ace cringes. "if he's writing poems about every single photo the guy publishes, that's WAY down the hardcore fandom rabbit hole!"
Jamil's eyes widen in realization. "Wait a minute. When you brought that heavy photo album with you to training camp, was that entire album nothing but official photos of Neige LeBlanche?"
"So let me get this straight," You say. "The only thing that you needed, was just a bunch of pictures of Neige?"
"Wow!" Kalim grins. "If you're that big of a fan, it must be nice getting to meet him up close! You should ask him for a handshake!"
Rook becomes flustered. "Ah, I suppose..."
The boy goes quiet.
"Rook's gone awfully quiet." Epel tilts his head. "What's the matter?"
Vil chuckles. "Feeling awkward, are we?"
Rook takes off his hat and holds it to his chest as he dramatically bows. "Roi des Neiges... Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Rook Hunt, member number two of the Neige LeBlanche fan club, Eternal Snow!"
"You're in his fan club?" Deuce exclaims.
Ace looks just as shocked. "And you've got a single-digit ID in it?"
You can't help but laugh. "Geez. You're such a fan boy."
Rook doesn't seem to hear. "Your work has shone a light upon my life and allowed me to live with hope in my heart. It is such an honor to speak with you face to face. Thank you so much for everything today."
"You carry yourself so differently here than when you come to my meet-and-greets." Neige places a hand to his chest. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize you sooner. Thank you for always supporting me!"
"I shall write you another letter to encapsulate my thoughts about your performance today."
Neige laughs. "When you do, make sure to sign it as Rook, not just your initial, okay?"
Jamil hums to himself. "Neige LeBlanche. He handled that with grace. I'm starting to see why he's such a beloved figure. He's a leading global celebrity, but he still treats fans warmly and attentively. That's definitely a strength."
"Guess you have to when you deal with fans like that all the time." You shrug.
Ace scratches his neck. "I dunno, part of me thinks Rook's just coming off way too strong as a fan."
Vil folds his arms and scoffs. "What a cad. This is quite the last-minute betrayal, you know."
Rook sadly nods. "Yes, I voted for Royal Sword Academy. But it had nothing to do with my fandom, truly! I was-"
Vil waves a hand. "Please, Rook. I know you're not the type to act on personal bias. Don't insult my intelligence. But I've known you for two years, and I never had the slightest clue that you were a fan of Neige's. You really are a hard man to read."
"Merci, Roi du Poison."
"Glad to see you got your smile back, Vi!" Neige claps his hands excitedly. "Ooh, I know. Let's sing together! That should put even more of a smile on everyone's face!"
"What?"
"Come on! Let's go!" Neige takes hold of Vil's hand and drags him along.
"W-wait! Neige!"
"Come on, Night Raven College boys!" Neige waves a hand. "Let's sing!"
Neige takes hold of your hand as well. "You too, Y/N! Sing with us!"
You shake your head. "But I wasn't part of the competition."
"What does that matter?" Neige pulls you along. "The competition is over. Let's just have fun!"
Neige drags you and Vil to the stage. The rest of the boys follow along. The audience cheers when they see Vil and Neige appear on stage.
Neige waves excitedly. "Here we go! Three, two, one!"
A song starts playing and the boys dance and sing along. Neige takes both your hands in his own and spins around the stage.
You laugh. "I'm afraid I'm not that much of a dancer."
"Who cares?" Neige smiles. "Just have fun and dance like nobody is watching."
You dance with the boys, smiling and laughing the whole time. Some people in the audience talk amongst themselves.
"Oh. My. STARS. Look! What a dream team Neige and Vil make!"
"Two top global celebrities are congratulating each other after a battle well-fought! What a beautiful, touching sight!"
"Who is that girl dancing with them?"
"I think she's a fan that they called up to dance with them."
"She's so lucky! I would give anything to dance with Vil and Neige!"
Somewhere else in the crowd, Malleus smirks as he watches you on the stage.
"Looks like I got to see Y/N in the performance after all."