A/N: I got in the mood to write a story one day and I figured why not make it about Ran-Ran, everyone's favorite Tsundere! So here it is. It's gonna start out kinda confusing but my OC's backstory will be revealed soon enough and it'll all come together in one big, happy, romantic ending…maybe.

DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor do I pretend to, own Uta no Prince-sama or any of its characters. I also do not own any of the song lyrics, they belong to Paramore. I only own my OCs.

Chapter 1: Pathway

Another annoyed sigh escaped Ranmaru's lips, heterochromatic eyes staring blankly out the window as he tried to drown out the excited chatter. How Reiji managed to continue talking for two straight hours he'd never understand. All he could do was rub his aching temples and silently pray for a single strip of duct tape to smack over the loud brunette's mouth. The self-proclaimed rocker sighed once more, this time noticed by an equally pissed off Ryuya, and he rolled his eyes as the ginger glared at him. "What crawled up your ass, Ryuya?"

Said actor only narrowed his eyes, grunting in irritation and focusing his attention back on the road ahead. Mismatched eyes picked up quickly on Ringo's apologetic glance and Ranmaru only thought up more questions. From the second they had all been told to go talk to a producer, the name of which Ranmaru had forgotten instantly after, it was like Ryuya had a perpetual stick shoved up his you-know-where and Ringo kept sending concerned glances. Maybe whoever this producer guy was had crossed Ryuya in some way? Whatever the issue was, Ranmaru couldn't care less. He simply wanted to stretch his legs and run far away from Reiji, who was now talking about birds or something random like that.

And then, suddenly, he found his prayers to an unknown deity answered. The car slowed to a stop, pulling in front of a large building with a sign that read "Pathway Productions". Making quick use of the button that held his seatbelt locked in, the obviously annoyed idol slid out of the car and almost face palmed at the sound of Reiji's voice again. "Yay we're here!"

Everyone, minus an unenthusiastic Ranmaru and Ryuya, stared wide-eyed at the humongous building before them and Ringo clapped his hands together to get the attention of the flabbergasted boys of Starish. "Okay everybody remember that we're here to work! I know it's a pretty building and a new exciting experience but we have to remain professional. So, when we get inside we're going to follow this nice man right here and do whatever he says!"

He gestured towards a tall, someone chubby man with dark sunglasses and a thick mustache. The man nodded and spoke in a serious tone, "Alright, my name is Giriko. Ringo here told you the basics but to go into a little more detail we have a couple more rules. First, don't touch any of the equipment. The boss only buys the best so I guarantee if you break something, not even you conglomerate heirs are going to be able to pay for it." Ranmaru noticed him stare pointedly at both Masato and Ren. "Second, don't wander off. Time and time again I get a group of young artists who walk up in here and automatically think they've made it big and don't want to follow the group. Don't be stupid. This is a big opportunity you've been given and I'm sure I, as well as your mentors, don't want you to throw it all away by thinking you're hot shit. Lastly, listen to the advice given to you. You've got six people already with you that have been doing this way longer than you. They know what they're doing, so pay attention. I don't wanna talk your ears off the entire time so let's get it moving."

Giriko waved them inside and Ranmaru shoved his hands in his pockets, following Camus and Ai as everyone made their way inside. Thankfully, Reiji had decided that it wasn't a good idea to talk when they were being shown around and they all walked in silence.

About a half hour had passed, Giriko showing them a couple of the editing rooms and vocal booths, and they reached a large studio room equipped with production equipment and a large variety of instruments. Ranmaru noticed a large variety of guitars in particular, a larger variety than any of the other instruments, and he watched in amusement as Otoya's eyes lit up at the sight. The sound of someone clearing their throat brought everyone's attention back onto a flustered Giriko scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. The man glanced at Ryuya and Ringo and gave an apologetic smile. "Heh, so Yamanaka-san is running a li-"

"I'm here! Don't worry!" Everyone's gazes were drawn to the door where a young woman was running, awkwardly trying to put on a pair of black boots at the same time. "Sorry guys, my photo-shoot ran a little late. Anyways, introduction time I suppose. I'm-"

"Y-You're Keala Yamanaka!" Otoya's sudden outburst gathered everyone's attention and the woman, Keala, laughed lightly. "That explains all the guitars! I'm a huge fan! Your last album was amazing I must have listened to it on repeat for a week straight!"

Ranmaru took the time Otoya spent rambling to focus on this Keala person. She was tall for a woman, probably only a couple inches shorter than he was, with slate grey eyes that were lined with black eyeliner and eyelashes given a generous amount of mascara. Her outfit was simpler than he had expected of a producer, consisting of a plain white tee, a leather jacket and a pair of black leggings tucked into the boots she had just put on. What was extremely intriguing about her, though, was her oddly colored hair. A mid-toned teal faded into waves of black, in almost a reverse ombre fashion. It was cool, though he wouldn't say it outloud, and had it not been for the oddly colored tresses he would have found her to be a bit boring in appearance. Not to say she wasn't pretty, because she definitely was, though that was also something he wouldn't say outloud; it was just that the hair appeared to truly define her.

"Yo, earth to Kurosaki. Are you okay?" A calloused hand waved in front of his sight and Ranmaru's gaze flickered to notice that everyone else was seated at a large table in the center of the room. Heterochromatic eyes met slate grey and Keala stared at him strangely. "Either your eyes have some serious issues or you were just checking me out…"

He glared, quickly pushing passed her to sit down between Reiji and Ai. Ai kept staring straight ahead but the rocker could feel Reiji's gaze and he turned to give a warning glare to the brunette. Reiji only laughed lightly and watched as Keala sat down in between Ryuya and Ringo, the former with an extremely displeased look on his face. Ranmaru wasn't sure if anyone else had noticed, but he could only assume that Keala was the person that Ryuya wasn't too keen on visiting, though he had no inkling as to why. Nevertheless, the grey-eyed woman simply smiled and placed her hands on the table. "So, let's talk business. Shining told me that you seven need someone to help you with a new album."

An hour and twelve minutes later, most of which Ranmaru had spent staring at the clock, the meeting was finally over. He realized that this room was actually Keala's office, though there were very few personal touches, and her hands were calloused in a similar pattern as his own, confirming what Otoya had said about her being a guitarist. He had also noticed, within the first twenty minutes, that Ryuya's displeasure at being near her was mutual. Though she kept a smile plastered on her face, it was pretty easy to spot the façade. She clearly was as fond of the actor as he was of her. Though Ranmaru still had no clue as to why, he wouldn't ask. It didn't apply to him at all and, therefore, wasn't worth his time to figure out. So, yawning loudly, the silver-haired man stood up and waited impatiently for everyone to be ready. But, of course, Otoya had to go and ask the woman a million questions. Leave it to him to stall their departure.

He focused his frustration into mumbling to himself, "Great."

Though he had thought no one noticed, Camus was standing less than a foot away with the same stoic expression as usual. "You could at least pretend to pay attention, Kurosaki. This woman took time out of her busy schedule to speak with us."

Purple and silver eyes stared uncaringly at the blonde and he shrugged, "None of that applied to me. Why should I pay attention?"

"You were staring quite intently at her earlier; I simply assumed you would've wanted to stare further."

Ranmaru scoffed and glared angrily, "Shut the hell up. No one asked for your opinion."

As per usual, Ai came between to two men to intervene calmly. "We're leaving."

Watching as his boss fell back onto the couch in her office, Giriko raised a brow and smirked. "Long day, Yamanaka-san?"

Dark grey eyes narrowed and a deep frown settled on her features. Though she had managed to keep a smile on her face for the entire meeting, Keala couldn't deny that the entire thing had irritated her to no end. "It's two in the afternoon and my entire day is already ruined. Seriously, I don't understand why Shining felt the need to send Ryuya. Ringo alone would've been fine but no he just had to send the douchebag too. Bullshit."

Giriko chuckled, sitting beside the woman and shrugging lightly. "At least Kurosaki-san didn't recognize you. He most likely would have made a big scene; I've heard he can be temperamental."

She laughed softly and nodded, "He hasn't changed a bit since we were kids, except for the purple contact and the extra two feet of height. I've changed a lot, though, which is probably why he didn't recognize me. I'm glad though, the last thing I need is him yelling his ass off about working with the daughter of the woman who caused his father to go bankrupt."

"Do you think he knows who it was?"

"Don't know but if he doesn't then I'd like it to stay that way. I don't need him added to the list of people she's screwed over that want repayment."

"You're already cleaning up that mess, Yamanaka-san. If he knew tha-"

"I can't tell anybody, Giriko, you know that. She doesn't want any of her kids knowing that I'm helping her out. I can't tell Ranmaru or any of his siblings, that's just the way it is. So, let's just keep it so he continues thinking I'm some random producer lady and not someone from his past. Okay?"

"Yes, Yamanaka-san."

Well you treat me just like another stranger
It's nice to meet you sir
I guess I'll go
I best be on my way out

Ignorance is your new best friend.