So basically this is just going to be a series of stories about our favorite ladies in a way, after this introductory chapter. In that way, it's sort of in the same vein as an AU. I have no idea where the inspiration for this story came from, but please enjoy.
The girls had all settled into the Nishikino beach house after a long day of playing in the water and relaxing on the sand. They were gathered around their sleeping bags, chatting and giggling amongst themselves, when Kotori suddenly remembered something.
"Ah, Honoka-chan, what was that thing you wanted to show us earlier?"
"Hm?" She looked towards Kotori, a piece of bread sticking out of her mouth. Umi glared at her.
"You shouldn't be eating carbs before you go to bed, it's bad for your digestion," She scolded the girl before considering what Kotori had said. "But... yeah, you mentioned something earlier that you wanted to show us something really interesting but then you got distracted by the beach."
Honoka's eyes widened in realization. "Ohh! I know what you're talking about now, hold on."
She popped up from where she was sitting and quickly made her way to where her bag was. She unzipped the bag and shuffled through all her extra clothes before finally reaching what she was looking for. She pulled it out of her bag, examining it once before heading over. "Here it is!"
The girls all gathered around their leader, looking confused.
"A… book?" Niko scoffed, not at all impressed by what Honoka considered interesting. It was a bigger, hardcover book that seemed to be bound in leather. Despite what it looked like though, a book was still just a book.
"Mhm! Not just any book though! I saw it yesterday when I was at the bookstore. I was going to pick up some new manga but its cover caught my eye." She flipped it over to the front and the eyes of the girls of μ's widened, for what they saw on the leather cover was indeed the letter μ. Honoka beamed at their reactions.
"I know right? And it gets weirder. So I pick up the book and open it up, and the title of the book is Muse Tales. So I think to myself, 'this has to be just a coincidence right?' So I read the first story at the store and once I finished it, I knew I needed to get this book and you show you guys. So even though I didn't get to pick up my new manga, I got something that was even cooler."
The rest of μ's sat there, staring at the cover. They didn't quite know what to say, but their curiosity was getting to them. Maki was the first to recover from the initial shock.
"But what about that first story made you want to get the book?" Honoka paused for a moment to think before answering.
"Well, when I read the first story I just thought it might be a coincidence, it didn't seem like an uncommon tale. So then I read the next one, and the one after that and that's when I realized that characters in the stories reminded me of μ's. At least from what I read, there were two more to go but I fell asleep before starting the fourth one."
There was a mix of shock and curiosity in the room. And very much in this case did curiosity get to the cat. "Nyaa what are we waiting for, Rin wants to hear the stories!"
"Yes! I want to hear it too!" Her best friend chimed in. Honoka gave them a goofy grin.
"That's what I was hoping to hear! Does everyone else want to hear it as well?" There was nodding and general agreement from everyone else.
"Ah, this reminds me of when I was younger. Our teacher would read us stories and fairytales while we all sat in a circle around her. Everyone would get so excited," Eli noted. Nozomi smirked.
"Then Eli-chi should read the stories to us and show us what it was like." Eli nudged Nozomi and rolled her eyes, but Honoka seemed to like the idea.
"Yes! Please! I'm not very good at reading aloud, and your voice would be perfect for narration." Eli looked around the room and saw the general look of agreement on everyone's face. She sighed, picking up the book.
"Okay everyone, gather round for the story!" She said, smiling as everyone got up and adjusted their seats to a spot where they know they would get a good view of the book. Eli flipped the pages of the book until she got to the first story, The Thief and the Minstrel. Under the title was an illustration of a lute and half an apple. She lifted the book to her side so everyone could see its pages and began the story.
"Once upon a time…"
I know it's short, but I promise the next chapter is in progress and should be up very soon!