In his anger, the only thing Hotaka wanted to do was return to the new location the younger girl had been moved to. He wanted to be praised for standing up for himself and for making such a strong impact on the people around him. It was his hope that he would be comforted by her. She would have told him he did a good job and would have hugged him tightly to let him forget about the massive stirring of emotions inside of him. In fact, he was so eager to have such things that the phone ringing in his pocket went unnoticed by him.

So it was Shota who received the next call. Against the redhead's better judgment, he had gone and went to see the Akahito-in-law. After being suddenly cut off from his would-be spy, he didn't think the brunette would ever have the guts to dial his number. Yet he did, so the least the male could do was hear him out. Alongside with their previous history, no doubt he could make a decent pawn against Hotaka, should the militant ever decide to go against the redhead's better judgment.

There was a slight recall in the younger male's movements as he saw the brunette in front of him, behind bars. Oddly enough, his last name didn't seem to protect him from receiving a beating. It was almost a relief that Hotaka hadn't come. He probably would have gone just a bit more insane, probably enough to start thinking for himself. And that wasn't something that Shota needed to deal with while he was already struggling to find a way to make someone else sane.

Kenko wasn't just hit once or twice. His busted lip was just the start of his wounds, a few dozen bruises visible to the eye with, no doubt, more hiding under his uniform. The male looked like he was immersed in unbearable shame, but, despite that, he couldn't hide the clear pain he felt. His wrist, which he held limply in his other hand, had clearly been broken in some shape or form, and yet, obviously, it hadn't been treated. A lot of good being an Akahito did him there. Then again, when another Akahito had inflicted that injury on him, it was clear it would be ignored.

"You look like you've been thrown in the pound," the redhead mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared down at the older male, "Well, after running away from your previous owner, someone was bound to catch you and throw you in here."

"Thanks for your concern," Kenko responded sarcastically, filled with self-pity and heartache.

"Don't get me wrong. I do feel for you. I know how it feels to be abused by your family just as much as you do. I'm just wondering why you're so passive about it. It irritates me."

"Well, you've always been the official heir to your family. I'm just baggage."

The brunette's self-pity was almost contagious. There wasn't much that could affect the redhead enough for him to give someone kindness for free. In fact, the only one that could claim he did that for them was Nami. Even with the (h/c) haired girl, he had always subtly demanded something in return. Usually, it was affection. Either way, he disliked the way his heart was moved by the brunette in front of him, a male who reminded him very much of himself.

"That means nothing. My grandfather would have abandoned me if I sat around begging for my mother's love."

"You're such a pompous ass."

"I meant you need to prove yourself. It's not like Kazuya turns a blind eye to talent. And considering the bastard that hit you, don't you think you could do a better job? Get a grip and do what I did. Usurp him."

Kenko motioned to himself, particularly to the wounds plaguing his body. They were mild, but still made it very difficult for him to even open his right eye all the way, the swollen black eye one of the most painful gifts he'd been given by his "better". And yet, despite his implication that he would never be able to get off his feet to such a fate, Shota was not buying it. It just seemed like he was making excuses, waiting for someone else to save him, just like Hotaka. That is why Shota couldn't help but call them both "dogs".

"I tried," the brunette shivered, curling his knees into his chest, "I was going to call...Haru. I tried, but he caught me. I'm never going to be able to change anything."

"Shut up."

"Can't you try and care about other people for once?"

"I am. So shut up."

Kenko listened. He always listened. To his mother, to his stepfather, to his stepbrothers, and consistently to the main branch family, he always listened. There wasn't much else he could do. He gave a blank look to the corporate heir in front of him. Before, he might have felt overwhelming jealousy, but, there wasn't much left in him any longer. The brunette slumped, letting his posture become insecure and crumpled.

"What do you want to do with your life?" the redhead spat, watching as the male only hung his head.

"Dunno."

"You're in Drisless. What's your major?"

"Linguistics. It's useless."

"You want to become a professor?"

"No."

"An editor?"

"No."

"Well, you're learning Afruan. Any plans on becoming a translator?"

Kenko remained silent. Whether it was an affirmation or a denial, it didn't mean anything. All it told the redhead was that he had given up on any dreams he might have had for his future. After all, no doubt the chancellor was planning on expelling him. Despite the fact they would turn the other cheek for a noble child assaulting another student, the self-important staff would never let petty theft of their own personal belongings go.

"You clearly had a spark of motivation enough to make you steal from that man. Why?"

"I hate that stupid school, and I hate this stupid country."

Shota leaned back on the wall, staring down at the brunette. He didn't speak a word. Perhaps that was why the brunette began to panic. The male tried to hold off as long as he could, biting down on his lip nervously before he remembered it was busted and winced out of agony. In the end, however, he did exactly as the redhead intended, beginning to blab on and on about his own personal motivations. It always worked.

"The only reason this happened in the first place was because they were too passive. They were too nice! I mean, what other country would just smile and offer up their natural resources to invaders?"

"That's not what happened."

"It might as well have. They didn't do anything. They didn't even resist when Athainians took over every single aspect of their economy and pushed their royal family to the side. I mean - "

The brunette paused for a moment and looked down at his feet shakily. He seemed to understand why the matter made him so irritated despite his typically lax personality. With a sigh, he gave a conflicted expression. He wanted so badly for his motivations behind his issues with the school and country to be based on his love for his friends. Hotaka and Sitri were special, more so than any pampered Athainian brat. But, in the end, the majority of his outrage came from his own experience.

Suddenly, Kenko stood up from his pathetic cocoon-like position, placing both hands on the bars. He even placed the one with the broken wrist there, probably to make more of an impact on the redhead in front of him. Granted, it was working. Shota was intrigued, tilting his head at the quick change in emotion. It looked like the brunette realized something he had that was necessary to his goals.

"I want Haru's number," he spoke authoritatively, squeezing the prison bars with his good hand, "What do you want in exchange for it?"

"Hotaka. I want him gone."

"I'm not going to kill my best friend."

"I don't want him dead. He's very useful. I just want him to no longer be a viable option for (Y/n)."

The brunette gave a strange look. It wasn't that he was completely averse to the idea. Though Hotaka was clearly deeply in love with her, it wasn't healthy for him. He was becoming aggressive and inhospitable, even skipping classes, training, and the numerous clubs he was involved with just because he valued her more. And, simply put, though she acted very kind, Kenko recognized the look in her eyes. She was incredibly ambitious, so it was only going to be a matter of time before she dragged the purple-haired male into something dangerous.

"You want me to be a cockblock?"

"If you'd prefer to put it that way. I don't care what you do, precisely, but don't break them up all the way. At least, not until she dismisses him as a candidate. Just give him something to focus more on."

"What candidate?"

Shota smiled, but he didn't respond to the inquiry. Instead, as the brunette agreed to his terms, the redhead very eagerly went to bail him out. It was a simple matter of money, and no matter how much of an idiot he was, the chancellor wasn't going to challenge it. After all, as a beneficiary from Haru, he wouldn't dare throw a fit at the next heir of the Akahito family's oldest standing friend.

The redhead guided the injured brunette into the car before handing him his phone, already unlocked for him to see. Kenko stared nervously at the contact, wondering if he could speak properly in the face of someone that powerful. It took him well over ten minutes before he let out a shaky breath and pressed the dial button. He listened with great fear as the call began to go through, and when someone's voice came through, he felt paralyzed.

"Shota!" a childish voice sounded out, his voice riddled with a thick foreign accent, "It's a Shota! What's a Shota?!"

Though, at first confused, Kenko soon figured out that it was the second son of the head of the family - Kazuya Akahito. The child's name was Bastien. He was still just a toddler, probably in the middle of playing with his older brother's phone. The older male tried to figure out what to do. He didn't know if Bastien was going to pass the phone back or if he was going to keep it for himself, throwing the brunette into disarray. That was when he heard a familiar voice, but contrary to how he had heard it before, it contained trace amounts of affection.

"You never call. Are you in the hospital? Are you dying? Did you eat nuts?"

Out of the corner of his eye, the brunette could see Shota twitching in embarrassment. The redhead covered his face, trying to suppress his very real desire to yell at the male or hang up. Instead, he just turned to look out of the window, glaring at Kenko to warn him not to laugh. Normally, he might have, but he was far too nervous, and even rubbing the back of his neck wasn't enough to alleviate his nerves.

"This isn't Shota," he stuttered, hanging his head submissively as if the male on the other end of the phone could see him, "It's Kenko. I'm an Akahito, too, I just - "

"Shut up."

Within an instant, the male's tone changed back to the one Kenko was accustomed to hearing. He used simple words and bathed them in spite and disinterest all the same. The call suddenly disconnected and it was very clear Haru had hung up on him. With trembling legs, the brunette wondered what he was going to do now. He couldn't just call again, and, even if he could, the male didn't have any reason to listen to him, let alone help.

"Give it here."

Shota suddenly grabbed his phone back and began furiously typing away before he dialed the number again. Within a moment, the call was answered, and the delighted sound of Bastien Akahito could be heard. Though it wasn't quite understandable what he was saying, the way he talked probably indicated he was excited about his brother being so popular. After all, Haru didn't answer the phone for just anyone. It was usually only limited to his immediate family, and only his father frequently called him.

"Kenko is an associate of mine. He's doing me a few favors. Would you hear him out?" the redhead explained, receiving a childish huff.

"Only because it's you," A pause. "So you're not dying because of peanuts?"

Embarrassed and enraged at the inquisition, Shota threw his phone to Kenko, crossing his arms over his chest with great irritation. He could absolutely believe the dense brunette would ask him something like that, but it still made him want to completely cut off their long-standing friendship. Then again, he had said more embarrassing things about some of their other friends, particularly a certain blonde.

"What do you want?" Haru questioned, his tone changing from one of slight affection to the complete disinterest the male had learned to fear.

"I...I," the male paused, feeling his heart close to bursting. However, when he finally gathered his thoughts and opened his mouth to speak, a squeal rang through the phone, interrupting him.

"Do you have pudding?!" Bastien shouted, seemingly taking the phone away from his brother.

"P-Pudding? Ah, well, no, but, if you'd like - "

"Don't talk to my brother," Haru interrupted coldly, clearly threatening him for his offense, "He's my brother."

"Yes! I understand! But I wanted...to talk about Okabe?"

"I don't know who that is."

"It's the chancellor of Drisless. You know, the one you're sponsoring?"

There was a moment of silence as Haru attempted to figure out who that was. Clearly absentminded from things that he didn't enjoy, the man must have slipped his mind. It made sense. In the first place, the man was chosen to be a beneficiary in a roulette game. Haru had simply thrown a dart at a board and he was the closest. He didn't care about him in the slightest, but after a solid two minutes of quiet contemplation, he gave a small "ah". Kenko figured he could continue at that point.

"People have started rebelling against Drisless. It's classist and its students are treated unequally if they're anything but Athainian. But, it's the Afraun students who - "

"Okay. You can be my sponsor...ee instead."

There wasn't another word after that. The call once again disconnected, leaving the brunette to stare blankly at the screen of the phone. He had no idea what that meant if the male was going to follow through with it or not, but it was clear that he wasn't immediately shot down. Rather, it seemed to be a chance to change something for the better. Before, Kenko would have thought that was impossible. A feeling of relief and gratitude welled up inside of him, a shaky smile appearing on his lips.

"Well, then, our deal stands," Shota smiled, putting a finger to his lips.