"Phew! We did it! Another performance well-done!"

Tsubasa stretched her arms high over her head as she and the other two members of A-Rise, Anju and Erena, strode back into the dressing room. They were tired, their muscles ached, their heads throbbed, their throats scratched, and their entire bodies were drenched in a slick sheet of sweat, but they'd never felt more alive than when on the stage. It was the same for every performance, they put their all into it to ensure the greatest experience for their fans. Tonight had been their first performance in qualifying for the semi-finals of the Love Live competition. They'd spent over a month practicing, but judging from the audience's overall reaction, they were a shoe-in for the finals. Tsubasa removed her uniform's beret and undone the bow around her neck, tossing them both onto the nearest counter. Anju stood off to the side to take a swig from her water bottle, while Erena immediately plopped down onto the couch. She laid her head on a pillow, stretching herself over the length of the couch, and shut her eyes.

"That went well, didn't it?" Tsubasa said to Anju.

Anju nodded. "I don't believe I've seen you dance with such incredible energy in a long time, Tsubasa. I was quite impressed."

"The Love Live expects nothing less!" Tsubasa nodded. She did not need to put on any sort of serious, sophisticated face with these two as she did in front of her fans and rival idols; Erena and Anju were her best friends, and they knew the 'real' Tsubasa better than anyone else. She could enjoy herself just as much as any idol.

"Your singing was certainly on par today too. You didn't miss a single beat. I thought you said you had trouble memorizing the lyrics during practice?"

Tsubasa nodded again. "I did, but when we stepped out onto that stage, I knew that one mistake would leave a black mark on our record...I'm just glad I managed it at the very last moment like that."

"Hmm. By the way, I'm not sure, but did you notice all of the eyes following you out there?"

"Eh?"

"I think a number of men in the audience had their eyes following you the entire time. Didn't you notice? They were all quite fascinated by you, especially when you did that little twirl that made your skirt fly up." teased Anju, twirling a lock of hair between her fingers.

Tsubasa's eyes widened as a fierce, deep-red blush crept across her cheeks. Anju giggled at the sight of their stoic leader looking so flustered.

"Don't worry; as long as Erena and I are still here to protect you, we won't let anyone scoop up our sweet little Tsu-chan,"

"A-Anju...please, stop..." Thoroughly embarrassed, Tsubasa turned her head away. She happened to glance over at Erena at this time, who had remained quite still in her position on the couch since they'd entered the room. She hadn't even spoken a word, or opened her eyes, after lying down. Tsubasa approached her.

"Erena,"

No response.

"Erena!"

Still no response.

"What in the world is she doing?"

Anju was the one to explain. "Didn't you ever notice it before? It's her 'shut-down' period; after our performances, she's quite worn out, and she needs to rest to regain her energy."

"That seems rather odd."

"Erena can be a little eccentric that way sometimes," Anju replied. She had been Erena's best friend a year before either of them had met Tsubasa and formed A-Rise, but their past was something that was discussed very little among the three, especially when Tsubasa herself was in the room.

"Why would she do that? And isn't sleeping in a dressing room not the most practical thing to do?"

"It's just the way Erena is. She will wake up in due time. All of the other times, she'd waited until she'd returned home. She must have been quite exhausted from today's work."

Tsubasa poked Erena's cheek, expecting her hand to be swapped away, but nothing happened. She poked Erena again. She tugged on Erena's hair. She grabbed the girl's arm and tried to drag her off of the couch, but Erena was like a great boulder, completely unmovable and unwilling to be moved. Tsubasa tried to even get on her friend's nerves further by undoing her uniform, unbuttoning it and tossing away her beret. She slipped her hands underneath Erena's armpits and tried tickling her. Still, Erena did not snap at her. Tsubasa was starting to feel the beginnings of frustration. She rarely allowed herself to get mad, however, so she knew it would be best to back away now.

"Well, Erena can stay here for as long as she wants; this is our personal dressing room, after all. I'm going to go and change. Anju, do you want to meet up later to go and get dinner?"

"That would be nice! Don't worry, Tsubasa, I'll make sure Erena will be up and energized when you get back!" Anju winked.

Tsubasa shook her head as she headed for the door. "I certainly hope so."

Once Tsubasa was gone, Anju made her way over to Erena, a playful grin dancing on her plump lips. She had been by Erena's side for a long time, and as such, she'd learned something very important. While Erena could simply recharge herself through sleep, there was a much faster, more preferred method as well. Anju was the only one capable of performing it. She climbed on top of Erena, straddling her, and lifted her up. She hugged her, a strong and passionate hug full of nothing but overflowing amounts of love. She pecked Erena on the cheek.

"Erena-chan..." her voice was like soft velvet flowing into the other woman's ears. It seemed to do the trick. Erena opened her eyes. She took Anju by the chin and gingerly kissed her on her mouth.

"Anju."

"You're fully charged, then?" Anju giggled before returning the kiss as happily as she'd received it.

"Yes."

"You're so silly, Erena,"

"I don't want you to call me 'eccentric' though; I think that's a little much. I'm not eccentric, I just like getting my rest."

Anju smirked. "Of course, I know that. I'm very sorry."

"Tsubasa even started undressing me...and you let her get away with that?"

"Oh, I would have stopped her had she gone any further. That would be entering my territory, wouldn't it?"

It was Erena's turn to laugh now. "Yes...yes it would..."

Tsubasa, now changed into a sweatshirt and jeans, continued to observe her two best friends through a crack in the door. She was sweating; when would be the best time to walk in? She really didn't want to ruin their moment, or even worse, give away the fact that she had been watching them. Why did they have to start making out now? A better question...why did she not know about their relationship until now?