A/N: I actually planned on writing this a while back, but was unable to get around to it. This takes place immediately after the Chu2Koi Christmas OVA, so if you haven't seen that, then this will probably not make much sense. Similarly if you haven't read Summer Forest, this won't make much sense either. Also this has tons and tons of cameos, to the point where calling it just a "Chu2Koi" fic is probably stretching the point. But oh well. Oh and if you are wondering about Wings or Reaching for Eternity, I'm hoping to get a chapter of at least one of them out before the end of Thanksgiving Break. If not, then over Christmas for sure.
Summer Forest 2
Nibutani Shinka's girlfriend was drunk. She had also just kissed her. In public. Shinka's heart was still pounding, both from the kiss and from the fear that they'd been outed. Thankfully the others had passed it off as an accident and even joked about their relationship moving faster than Togashi's and Takanashi's. If only they knew.
"So how drunk are you really?" Shinka and Sanae sat on a train, heading back to Sanae's mansion. Sanae's head rested on Shinka's shoulder. A slight smile graced Shinka's face as she imagined what their friends would think of this sight. Sanae lifted her head and looked at Shinka. Her blue eyes were clear and focused.
"Not nearly as drunk as you" a hiccup forced its way out of her mouth "probably thought." She scowled when Shinka giggled. "Ok maybe I was a bit more drunk than I planned."
Shinka was once again amazed at the transformation Dekomori Sanae underwent when she wasn't around Takanashi Rikka or the other members of the Eastern Magic and Napping Club. On the one hand, the twintailed "Mjolnir Hammer", servant of the Tyrant Eye; on the other hand, Dekomori Sanae, intelligent and cultured young lady of means. Shinka wondered which was the true form of her girlfriend, or if they were both merely masks she wore. Sanae rested her head back onto Shinka's shoulder and the brown haired girl rested her own cheek against the ash-blonde head.
"So why did you do that, anyway. Don't try to pretend it was an accident."
"It was a test."
"A test?"
"Yes, to find out what they would think." Sanae's hand found Shinka's and their fingers intertwined. "I don't want to keep us a secret, and I needed to know what Mas…Rikka and the others would think."
"I don't want to keep them in the dark forever, but please tell me about this sort of thing in the future? If only so we can keep the story straight." The train pulled to a stop, the two girls exiting hand in hand. "Come on, let's get back to your place and change. We have somewhere else to go tonight, after all.
Half an hour later, Shinka stood before the sink in Sanae's bathroom, adjusting her hairclip. She'd changed into a knee-length black spaghetti-strap dress, paired with a matching set of pumps and a black hairclip.
"Shinka, you ready?" Sanae called from her room.
Shinka gave her hairclip one last tweak before heading into the bedroom. Sitting lightly on the edge of the bed was Sanae. Dressed to contrast with Shinka, her white dress had a vaguely Chinese cut to it. Her platform mules raised her to above Shinka's shoulder height, despite Shinka's own heels. While Shinka had left her hair mostly the same, Sanae had taken down her twintails and instead had loosely gathered her hair and draped it over her right shoulder.
"You look beautiful." Sanae stood and Shinka gathered her in her arms. Sanae tilted her head up and they kissed briefly.
"So where are we going? You've been teasing this for a month now." Sanae pouted slightly.
"Well I was going to tell you, but after that stunt you pulled I think I'll leave you in suspense a bit longer. Come along, we need to get going." Shinka grabbed her purse with one hand and Sanae with the other and led the girl out of the room. They passed through the living quarters towards the entrance. None of the servants seemed at all concerned about where their young mistress was headed that late at night. Shinka was continually amazed at how much freedom Sanae was given. Shinka had worked hard to make sure her actions this night would go unnoticed, but Sanae was just leaving without a word.
The Dekomori family butler had already opened the front door, but something caused Shinka to turn and look back into the house. Up on the second floor balcony, overlooking the grand entrance hall, a woman stood. Her long hair was a shade or two lighter than Sanae's, her eyes a piercing ice blue. Her gaze locked onto Shinka, causing the brunette to swallow slightly. She'd only very briefly met Sanae's mother once before. She never seemed to be around. Even during the party earlier in the evening she'd been nowhere to be seen. But now she appears. The woman turned her head and walked away, leaving Shinka feeling like she'd just been analyzed in the most intense way possible. A tug at her hand brought her attention back to where it should be.
"Come on, Shinka, let's go." Sanae pulled her out the door towards the waiting black car. Its door was of course open and waiting for the girls. This was not how Shinka had planned on reaching their destination, but it seems she was not being given much choice. Climbing in after her girlfriend, she found Sanae's regular driver in the front, waiting for directions.
"Where to, milady?" His tone was formal, as always.
Sanae scrunched up her face, she didn't like being called 'milady'. "Shinka knows. Tell him already."
Shinka gave a slight sigh, leaning over the seat and whispered an address into the driver's ear. She was going to keep this a secret no matter what.
"Very well, please buckle your seatbelts, miladies."
Roughly 45 minutes later the car came to a halt. The ride had been torture for Shinka. She'd never realized how good Sanae was at making her want to do things to her, but in a way that ensured she couldn't touch her. This was her punishment for keeping their destination a secret. As they unbuckled, the driver had already gotten out and opened the door.
"Do you need me to wait, milady?"
Sanae looked questioningly at Shinka. "No, we will be staying the night with an acquaintance of mine who lives in the area. We will call if we need anything." Sanae's eyebrow raised microscopically, but she didn't say anything.
"Very well then. I will return to the mansion. Have a good evening, miladies." He bowed slightly and returned to the car.
"Who are w-" Shinka placed her finger over Sanae's mouth, cutting off her words.
"You'll see. Now come along. Its right around the corner. Locking arms with her girlfriend, Shinka led her down the corner. About halfway down the block was their destination. A stairwell leading down to a basement, marked only by a small neon sign with the words "Club Lily".
Sanae gasped, she'd heard of the club of course, but hadn't thought that it was going to be their destination for the night.
"I told you I'd bring you, right?" Shinka smiled slightly "are you ready?" Sanae nodded jerkily. Shinka led Sanae down the stairs till they reached the metal door at the bottom. Shinka reached out and rapped on the door. A moment later the small panel in the door slid open.
"Yes?" The voice was female, but deep.
"A bud blooms, searching for the sun." Shinka spoke the passphrase with confidence. The panel slid shut and a moment later the door opened.
"SHINKA!" Sanae took a step back as an enormous woman, in a red and green flannel shirt wrapped Shinka up in a massive hug. "You haven't been here in forever!" The woman glanced to the side and noticed Sanae, staring at her with a shocked look on her face. "Oh, I see!" she put Shinka back down on the ground and turned to Sanae. "Well aren't you a cutie. I must say Shinka, you have excellent taste." Shinka finished shaking off the effects of the hug.
"What, no 'terrifying butch lesbian' routine for her, Yama?" The bouncer got a hurt look on her face.
"I only do that to newbies, and she's with you so she doesn't count. Also she didn't show up looking like a cheap whore." Shinka's face went bright red.
Yama noticed the curious expression on Sanae's face. "Well you see..." she trailed off.
"Sanae, Dekomori Sanae" Sanae provided helpfully.
"Well you see Sanae, the first time your girlfriend came here she was dressed like a 10 yen hooker. She said she did it because she wanted to get picked up." Shinka's face had somehow managed to turn even more red. "And to be fair, she did. Get picked up I mean."
"No more. Stop. Please." Shinka begged. "Sanae I'll tell you the whole story later, I promise. Let's just go inside."
Yama chuckled slightly then reached into the pocket of her jeans, pulling out two paper wristbands, colored neon green. She took each girl's arm and wrapped one of the bands around their wrist. Sanae looked at hers quizzically. "It shows we're underage, so no alcohol." Sanae vocalized a noise Shinka took as an understanding.
"Also lets the older patrons know to keep their hands off. With some leeway, of course. And not like that matters too much since you are already a couple." Yama moved out of the doorway and gestured for them to head inside. Shinka linked arms with Sanae and headed inside. "Oh by the way Irisu is here." Shinka stiffened slightly but kept walking.
"Who's Irisu?" Sanae had noticed Shinka's reaction.
"She's...she's the girl who picked me up the first time." Shinka figured hiding it would just cause problems.
"I...see." Sanae's voice quavered a bit.
"Look, I hadn't even met you yet, and she wasn't even technically my first and it didn't really mean-"
"Didn't mean what, Shinka?" A sultry voice interrupted Shinka.
Both girls spun around, behind them stood a tall girl with long black hair. Her red dress showed off her generous cleavage and while it fell all the way to her ankles, a slit on one side went all the way up to her hip, showing off her shapely bare leg. A matching red hair band held her bangs back. The only incongruous element was the neon-green wristband, showing that she was a minor, just like Shinka and Sanae.
"Ah...ah..." Shinka struggled to pull her thoughts together. "Sanae this is Irisu Fuyumi; Irisu this is Dekomori Sanae, my girlfriend."
A light seemed to shine in Irisu's eyes. "An honor to meet you, Sanae. Can I call you Sanae?" Sanae just nodded in response. "Shinka's quite the catch. I've already started to regret not pursuing her myself." Shinka opened her mouth, but no response came to mind. "And you are just perfectly elegant. Shinka, where did you find this completely perfect young lady?" Once again Shinka was at a loss for words.
Thankfully Sanae was not suffering from the same lack of brain function as Shinka. "It is an honor to meet you, Irisu." She curtseyed slightly. "We do appear to have at least one thing in common." Sanae looked at Shinka meaningfully. "In fact." She leaned in and whispered something to Irisu, who responded in kind. Both then started giggling while looking directly at Shinka.
"Hey what are you two saying about me?" Shinka was beginning to understand how hapless male leads in bad anime felt.
"Oh nothing, Shinka." Irisu responded. "Just...comparing notes." Another burst of giggles.
Shinka decided she wasn't going to put up with being used for their amusement. "Well, you two keep doing that. I'm going to go have a drink." With a harumphing noise she spun and headed for the bar. She ignored the calls of her name that trailed after her.
Sliding into a seat at the bar, she called for an oolong tea. A moment later one was sat down before her. "It's Christmas, Shinka. Why the long face?" Shinka looked up to find a pair of red eyes, framed by shoulder length red hair. A crooked smile completed the picture. "Girl problems?"
"Yes, you could say that Minori." Shinka took a sip of her tea. "How'd you guess?"
"Well, Irisu and a blonde I've never seen are standing behind you, and they can't seem to decide if they want to laugh, cry or start kissing you." Shinka spun her stool around to find exactly what the redheaded bartender had described.
"What, here to continue embarrassing me?" Sanae apparently had finally come to a decision. She stepped forward, grabbed Shinka's face and pulled her down into a passionate kiss. A cheer came from the women and girls surrounding them.
Sanae finally broke the kiss, but didn't let go of Shinka's head. "Shouldn't you be happy that your girlfriend and former one-night stand-"
"Two nights. It was twice." Irisu interrupted.
"-two-night stand are getting along so well? Instead of having a catfight in the middle of the dance floor?" Shinka pondered that for a moment, then reached up and pulled Sanae into a second kiss.
"Fine, I'll forgive you." Another round of cheers. Sanae slipped into the stool on one side of Shinka, while Irisu took the one on the other. Minori placed a pink-colored drink in front of each of them.
"Two Shirley Temples, on the house." Sanae investigated the unknown drink before taking a sip.
"Wow this is amazing!" She drained the rest of the drink in almost a single gulp.
"Well you can thank Ami-chan for that." Minori nodded towards a woman with a blue ponytail at the other end of the bar. As Irisu says, she makes the best Shirley Temples." Irisu raised her glass in Ami's direction, who just rolled her eyes in response. "Anyway, are you Shinka's new girlfriend? You're quite the cutie." Sane blushed a bit in response. "I thought her type was the cool beauty type like Irisu, not the cute and petite type." Shinka started to open her mouth, but decided better of it. "My name is Minori, Kushieda Minori. Minorin to my friends. I'm one of the bartenders here. Over there is my girlfriend Kawashima Ami." Minori leaned close as if to whisper, but her words were clear enough to be heard all the way where Ami was standing "don't let her looks fool you, she's really a softie deep down."
"Minori, why do you do that?" Irisu was finishing up her own Shirley Temple. "It just makes her mad."
"Because Amin is at her cutest when she's mad, of course!" Minori responded as if that should be obvious. Irisu declined to dignify that with an answer, while Shinka met Ami's gaze and the rolled their eyes in unison.
"Well aren't you bunch just having so much fun." A new voice interrupted the conversation. "How nice to be able to joke around about this stuff." Shinka leaned over to look past Irisu, and saw the source of the voice. A girl about her own age, with orange hair cut above her shoulders. A small green hairpin held it out of her face. She was wearing a pale green dress with a fairly reserved cut. On one wrist was the neon wristband.
"Now now Midori, no need to be so bitter." Minori had moved over to the girl.
"Who's that?" Shinka whispered to Irisu. Sanae leaned in as well.
"Tokiwa Midori. This is only her second or third time here. "I'm not sure what is up with her exactly, I've only briefly spoken to her. Minori's pretty friendly with her though."
The redheaded bartender was currently patting the orange-haired girl on the head. "Now now, it's not like she said no or rejected you, right?"
"But how can I even tell her? If I'm wrong then I'll destroy our friendship and she'll go right into his arms." Midori picked up her drink and downed the rest of it in one go. "I'm not like you guys. I can't have a happy life. I'm doomed."
Irisu gave off a little sigh, then turned towards the despondent girl. "Do you really think you are so special?" Shinka nearly choked at the biting tone of Irisu's voice.
"Iri-" She started to speak but a hand on her arm made her stop, she looked over to see Ami standing next to her inside the bar, she shook her head slightly. Shinka could feel Sanae leaning on to her back, looking over her shoulder at what was happening.
"What? Who are you?" Midori turned to Irisu. "Are you here to mock me? Make fun of me?" She nearly snarled the words.
"I'm here to disabuse you of the notion that what you are experiencing is particularly special and worthy of our indulgence. Who am I? Well my name is Irisu Fuyumi, like you I am a girl who likes other girls. In fact, that is the one thing everyone in this building shares." Irisu gestured with one hand towards the rest of the bar. "One other thing that many of us share is the pain of falling in love with the wrong girl. Not just any straight girl, but someone particularly close. A friend, even a best friend. Then being torn between confessing, risking not only being rejected but ruining the most precious relationship in our lives. The alternative is keeping it bottled up. Not telling her, suffering in noble dignity, to not ruin the relationship. But it eats at you. Deep inside. You always wonder. Could it have worked? Even if she ends up getting a boyfriend you'll always wonder. 'Could it have worked?' You are not alone in this. I can name a dozen women in this bar right now who have experienced this, including myself."
Shinka was taken aback by Irisu's revelation that that had happened to her. She was sure Irisu could have any girl she wanted. But even she suffered for how she was. Sanae's hands dug into Shinka's shoulders, she reached up and placed one of her own hands on top of Sanae's.
Irisu continued. "It hurts. It hurts so much. But don't come in here and start taking it out on the people you should be looking to for support. If you can't bring yourself to confess to that girl, then you should accept that. She's not the only girl in the world, so don't wallow in your misery and do not try to drag others down with you." Irisu's voice never rose, never sounded like a lecture. She just laid things out in a brutally honest manner. Midori opened her mouth to respond, then looked at the people around her.
Ami had moved next to Minori, arms wrapped around her from behind. A single tear could be seen in Minori's eyes. Sanae gripping Shinka's back, one of Shinka's hands resting atop Sanae's. And then Irisu, her face stoic and her eyes dry, but deep in those eyes was an echo of pain.
"I...I'm sorry. I guess I..." she trailed off, not really knowing what to say.
Irisu leaned forward and put a hand on Midori's knee. "Thats ok, a lot of girls come in here feeling the same way you do. There is nothing wrong with that. Just remember that everyone you meet here will have some sort of similar pain. It's part of being what we are. She smiled at the younger girl. "Come on, Midori. Let's go and dance." Grabbing Midori by the hand she pulled her to her feet. "Coming you two?" Shinka nearly leapt off her stool and pulled Sanae after her.
Irisu led them to the dance floor, Shinka noticed there was no band and commented as such to Irisu. "HTT always takes Christmas off. Some tradition of theirs, at least thats what Mio told me." Shinka assumed Mio was one of the members of the band. "none of our backup bands were free, so today we have a DJ. Though Minori's been dropping hints all night about some sort of special guests later. Oh and they're doing open mikes, if you are interested in embarrassing yourself further" Shinka looked over at the DJ station, where two girls were working the sound board. The one in charge had long blonde hair and sapphire blue eyes. Her assistant had striking silver hair done in a ponytail, and eyes the color of rubies. A moment later they entered the dance floor and the pause between songs elapsed. A shocking techno beat filled the dance floor and Shinka let go and just danced.
What felt like hours later the four emerged from the throng of dancing women, making their way to an empty table with a good view of the stage. All four were sweaty and panting from the non-stop dancing. "Wow that was intense." Sanae gasped the words out. "I'm as tired as after spending all day with ma-" she cut off "-Rikka." Shinka took one of Sanae's hands in her own, intertwined their fingers and squeezed gently and reassuringly.
Midori meanwhile was busy fanning herself while Irisu managed to look completely nonplussed, though her face was still covered by a sheen of sweat. She beckoned over a wandering server and ordered them each a Shirley Temple, which were delivered in short order. They sat quietly for a few minutes, sipping their drinks and generally just recovering from the chaos that was the dance floor. Shinka felt a tug on her arm.
"Hey, Shinka. Where's the restroom?" Sanae whispered it to her, as if she were embarrassed to say it out loud.
"Oh, it's over in that corner." She pointed towards the other side of the building. "Here I'll go-"
"I'll show her." Midori stood up. "I need to go as well, and I know where it is." She walked off with Sanae a step behind her.
"So, are you going to you-know-what Midori tonight?" Shinka casually tossed the question to Irisu.
"If by 'you-know-what' you mean 'take her to a love hotel and screw her brains out' then...maybe." Irisu swirled her glass a bit. "It's starting to get a bit odd being known as the girl who gives other girls a good night, but never actually settles down. But as I said to Midori, I know my share of heartbreak. Ultimately though it depends on her. I won't force her, but we'll see how things go along." She finished off her drink. "The real question is if she'll go for it, with her feelings for that friend of hers still unresolved. Not everyone is as sanguine about casual sex as we are, Shinka."
Irisu paused. "So, Shinka. How did you hook up with that lovely, lovely young lady?"
By the time Shinka finished giving Irisu the highly abbreviated version of how she and Sanae started going out, Midori had returned to the table. Alone. "Where's Sanae?" Shinka wasn't worried, but it was a little odd.
"Weird, we left the restroom at the same time but...oh she's over there, talking to the DJs." Midori pointed to the DJ station, and indeed Sanae was talking to the golden haired DJ. In her hand was her smartphone and she seemed to be gesturing about something.
"I'll go over and se-" she started to stand up only to find herself jerked back down by Irisu.
"Oh no, she's planning something, I can tell. And you aren't going to go and spoil it by being nosy. Thats my job." Shinka glared at her friend, but decided to just sit and wait. A few moments later Sanae walked towards the mike stand, the silver haired DJ with her. The DJ adjusted the stand downwards to the correct height, then returned to the station.
As soon as she returned, music Shinka had never heard before began to play and then unsurprisingly Sanae began to sing. What was surprising was she wasn't singing in Japanese. Or English.
Rastsvetali iabloni i grushi,
Poplyli tumany nad rekoj.
Vykhodila na bereg Katyusha,
Na vysokij bereg na krutoj.
By the time the first verse ended a hush had fallen across the bar. The dancers had stopped to watch, everyone at the tables had turned their attention to the small girl singing in a language none of them understood. Shinka realized she was gaping at her girlfriend, closing her mouth with a click. Across the table Irisu giggled slightly at the sight.
Vykhodila, pesniu zavodila
Pro stepnogo, sizogo orla,
Pro togo, kotorogo liubila,
Pro togo, chi pisma beregla.
"So, did you know your girlfriend could sing in Russian?" Irisu leaned across the table to ask the question.
"I...I didn't even know she could sing. Much less in Russian." Shinka herself was still trying to process this new revelation.
Oj ty, pesnia, pesenka devichia,
Ty leti za iasnym solntsem vsled.
I bojtsu na dalnem pograniche
Ot Katyushi peredaj privet.
By now the entire bar was silent, all attention focused on Sanae, who seemed oblivious to everything but her song. Her eyes were unfocused, as if singing this took all the concentration she had.
Pust on vspomnit devushku prostuiu,
Pust uslyshit, kak ona poet,
Pust on zemliu berezhet rodnuiu,
A liubov Katyusha sberezhet.
Finally the song ended. The bar erupted in furious applause. Sanae snapped out of the near fugue state she'd been in, the sound of the applause almost overwhelmed her. She began to collapse, when she was caught by Shinka, who'd made a bee-line to her the moment the song ended. "Hey, Sanae. You ok?"
Sanae's near faint ended, and she found herself able to stand again. She bowed to the audience, put the microphone back in its stand and returned to her table.
"Wow Sanae, I had no idea you could sing! Why did you never mention this before?" Shinka could barely contain her excitement. "And what was that song? Irisu said it was Russian. Why do you know a Russian song?"
Having reached their table, Sanae sat down. Irisu had ordered more drinks, this time some hot tea which Sanae gratefully sipped. "My grandmother is Russian. So I'm actually a quarter Russian. I learned the song from her. It's called Katyusha." She sipped her tea again. "I was able to find a copy of the music online and I loaded it onto my phone. When I heard they had open mic here tonight I thought I'd sing it for Shinka." Sanae's cheeks flushed slightly. "I didn't know if I could do it, but I did." She looked up into Shinka's eyes. "Did you like it?"
"I loved it." Shinka leaned down and kissed her.
"Hey, something is happening." Midori pointed towards the stage. Shinka and Sanae broke their kiss and looked in that direction. The silver haired DJ was taking the mic stand away, though as she put it away she handed the wireless microphone itself to her blonde companion.
"Merry Christmas Club Lily!" A rousing cheer from all the women in the club. "It's funny to say that, since my name happens to be Lily!" A smattering of laughter in response. "I've been working as your DJ all night, with the assistance of my friend Haku." Lily pulled Haku over and put her arm around her.
"Hello, everyone." Her voice cracked a bit, but Haku seemed to be trying her best. Lily let her go and the silver haired woman retreated to the DJ booth with haste.
"She's a little shy, but she's a lot better than she was not too long ago. Everyone give her a hand for all her hard work!" The women applauded enthusiastically in response. Lily was good at working a crowd. "I'm here to introduce tonight's main event. I know some of the staff have been dropping hints all night that something special is in the works." Lily looked over towards the bar, where Minori stuck her tongue out in response, prompting laughter from the girl's who noticed. "While it will be hard to follow the bravura performance by Miss Sanae," more applause, Sanae's face turning red again, "I think we'll manage it. Take it away ladies!"
The lights in the building went dark, for a moment all that could be seen were the red glows of the emergency exits. Then two spotlights came on. They illuminated the opposite sides of the stage. Moments before no one had stood in those spots. Now two girls were revealed.
On the left a tall girl wearing a short black dress, its neckline plunging to show off her generous cleavage. Her long legs bare, a set of pumps on her feet. Her hair was a brilliant pink, falling all the way down her back. On her head was a headphones and microphone combination decorated with teal butterfly wings.
On the right a shorter girl, her dress just as short but without the daring neckline. Her legs were covered by black thigh-high stockings, her feet had platform heels, raising her up to just a bit shorter than the pink haired girl. Her hair was brilliant teal, tied off into two twintails as long as the ones Sanae usually wore, only with far far more volume. Her headset had pink butterfly wings.
An audible gasp as members of the audience recognized the outfits, and the girls who wore them. Lily's voice came from the darkness as a piano began to play.
"Members of Club Lily, it gives me great honor to present Megurine Luka and Hatsune Miku!"
The song that they sang was known to virtually every girl in the club. It had been a chart-breaking smash for both singers. As much as the song was popular with the public, it meant far more to the girls and women who came to Club Lily. It was a love song, a song about the love between two women. Where their love overcame obstacles and wasn't shamed or shown as dirty. A song about two girls unrepentantly in love with each other, because there was no reason for them to be repentant about it.
Shinka, Sanae, Midori and Irisu watched in silence as Miku and Luka sang Magnet. All four girls were wondering the same thing. Were the rumors true. From the moment the song came out rumors about the two singers had begun to fly. Most dismissed them as nothing, 'fake lesbians' were hardly unknown in the business, after all. It was a good way to generate publicity. Besides, the only way a song about lesbians could be allowed to exist and become popular was if the singers were straight. No way could two actual lesbians become as popular as Hatsune Miku and Megurine Luka.
But here they were. In a lesbian bar on Christmas Eve. Two of the most popular and well known singers in Japan right now. Here. In Club Lily.
The final verses. In the PV and in the live performances Miku and Luka would get so close their headset microphones intertwined, they were singing into each other's mics. So close it always looked like they were about to kiss. Staring into the eyes of their partner.
Draw me closer, as if we are two magnets,
that even if we separate, we will reunite again.
Let's become one; it's okay not to able to turn back.
That's fine, for you're my one and only love.
Always they broke away at the end. Shinka had watched the PV for Magnet over and over, always hoping that somehow this time it would end with the kiss it so obviously wanted to. The final verse ended. The two singers mouths literally inches from each other, separated only by a pair of headset microphones. Two hands came up, gently moving the microphones out of the way. You could hear a pin drop in the silence of Club Lily in that moment. Then two of the most popular idols and singers in Japan kissed.
For a second time in ten minutes Nibutani Shinka sat slack-jawed at what she saw on the stage of Club Lily, however this time she was hardly alone. Nearly every other girl in the audience had the same reaction. A few moments later she was on her feet, clapping and cheering. Dimly she recognized Sanae had done the same, and Midori and Irisu and everyone else she could see.
Onstage Miku and Luka were themselves only dimly aware of the commotion they had caused. They had expected it, of course, but the feeling of finally ending Magnet the way it had always intended to be ended had taken them to their own world for a while. Of course, the fact that they were kissing the woman each loved more than life itself didn't hurt. "We have to talk to them you know." Miku got the words out as they barely broke the kiss to take a breath. "They won't calm down until we do."
"Let them cheer. It feels good. To kiss you in public and have everyone cheering. It's a dream come true." Luka pushed her lips against Miku's once more, not yet having had enough of her lover. Her hand started to travel down, reaching in-between Miku's legs. Miku broke the kiss, more firmly this time.
"Not now. We may be in a lesbian club but they still frown on people having sex on stage." Miku pulled her microphone back into place and turned towards the crowd. Luka gave her a pouty face and did the same.
"Merry Christmas!" Both spoke in unison, they were quite practiced at that. They waited for the crowd to calm down, which surprisingly only took a minute or so.
Miku stepped forward, "I'm Hatsune Miku." Luka then stepped forward
"And I'm Megurine Luka. We are both honored to be here at Club Lily. Few of you may know, but I used to be a regular here, some years ago. That is why I decided this would be the best place to reveal this."
Miku spoke up. "As you may have realized, Luka and I are indeed lovers. We have been since before Magnet debuted. In fact the original plan was for the PV to end just as you saw, with us kissing. Unfortunately things did not work out as we hoped."
"However," Luka taking over. "We have decided to finally reveal the truth to the world. Tomorrow on the Live Christmas Day Stage at Tokyo Tower we will once again end Magnet as you saw. We no longer want to hide this from the world."
Shinka couldn't believe what she was hearing, and judging by the reactions on Sanae and the other's faces, neither could they. Miku and Luka, actually lovers. Wanting to let the entire world know.
"We have a few more songs to sing, though after Magnet most might seem a bit plain. But we'll do our best!"
Half an hour later Miku and Luka ended their set, the lights coming back up as the duo walked off stage. "I still find it hard to believe." Midori, who'd had much the same opinion of Magnet as Shinka. "I hope it goes well for them tomorrow. I know lots of people still aren't accepting, but they are so popular that maybe..."
"I'm not sure, but I still respect their decision." Irisu. Who it should be noticed was now holding Midori's hand, whether Midori was fully aware of this yet was not clear. "I think there will be quite the backlash, but if it does go well it may help all of us."
"It was beautiful." Sanae had tears in her eyes. "You could really tell how much they love each other. I know lots of people dismissed it as just faking originally, but you can't fake that." She'd long since moved her chair close to Shinka's, and now rapped her arms around her lover's arm. "The way they look at each other, only people truly in love can say so much with their eyes."
"The little songstress here is right." A hand came down on Sanae's head. A gasp came from Midori as she saw who stood behind Sanae and Shinka. Shinka and Sanae twisted around and gasped themselves, behind them were Megurine Luka and Hatsune Miku. Luka was the one who had spoke and who's had had taken residence on Sanae's head.
The singers were still wearing the dresses from before, but had taken off their headsets. They moved around to the other side of the table and pulled up some empty chairs. "I have to say that Sanae here quite impressed the both of us." Miku nodded in agreement. "If you are interested in a singing career, come by sometime. I'll put in a good word for you."
"Assuming we have a career after this, of course." Miku's tone was cheery, despite her words. "Though most of the higher-ups know already. This is just making it public. They've decided that having the only lesbian idol couple will be good for sales." Luka rolled her eyes at that. "We're still expecting backlash, but hopefully it will be manageable."
Shinka, Sanae and Midori were still trying to deal with having Miku and Luka sitting at a table with them, apparently having small talk, which meant it was up to Irisu to find out why this was happening. "Excuse me Miss Hatsune, Miss Megurine."
"Luka and Miku is fine." Luka responded casually, a slight grin on her face.
"Miku and Luka, then. Why exactly are you here. Not at this club, but at this table. Talking to us. We're just four teenage girls." Shinka and the others had finally snapped enough out of their shock to be able to nod along with Irisu's question.
"Well that is an interesting question." Luka's face still had an obvious grin. "Part of it was to make that offer to Sanae, also to return this." Luka pulled something out of the small bag she was now wearing. She handed it to Sanae. It was her Smartphone. "You left this with Lily."
"T-Thank you." Sanae took her phone back and slipped it into her own bag.
"Another part was to speak to you, Miss Irisu Fuyumi." Luka's grin was completely obvious by now. "Ah, but how surprised I was when Minorin mentioned your name."
"Am I supposed to know what that means?" Irisu's voice had gotten hard. "Because I am quite sure we have never met."
"Hmm. Well, I imagine things will become clearer tomorrow. If not, make sure to ask your mother about me." With that Luka stood. Miku standing with her. As Luka walked away, Miku gave them an apologetic look before heading after her lover.
"Irisu, what was that about?" Midori was now clinging to Irisu the same way Sanae was to Shinka.
"I don't know. I wonder if she was just messing with us. Megurine Luka does have a reputation for enjoying low humor. Regardless, I will be looking into it." Opening her purse, Irisu pulled out her own phone and checked the time. "Well I don't know about you ladies, but I think it's high time we retired for the night."
Shinka checked the time herself and was shocked at how late it was. "How did it get so late already?"
"That being said, I have a two-bedroom suite booked nearby, would you like one of the rooms? I can tell you right now that getting a room of any sort at this time of night on Christmas Eve will be impossible."
Shinka looked at Sanae, who nodded. "Sure, we'll take you up on that."
Irisu then turned to Midori, who seemed to have finally caught on to what they were discussing. "Would you care to join me for the rest of the night, Miss Tokiwa Midori? I will not press you on this, I am simply making an offer. Would you like to share a bed with me, this fine Christmas Eve?"
"B-By 'share a bed' you mean..." she gulped slightly, "sex, right?"
"I mean exactly what I said. If you wish for more, then there can be more. If all you are comfortable with is sleeping, then that is all we will do." Irisu held out her hand.
Midori hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took Irisu's hands in her own. "If...if you are ok with me."
Hand-in-hand, the two couples made their way out of Club Lily, past the smiling bouncer and into the cold, late night air.
Hours later, Shinka and Sanae laid snuggled under thick covers. Their clothes were scattered across the room, where they'd fallen in their haste to get out of them when they arrived. Shinka was still awake, her body pushed against her lover's naked back. Sanae was soundly asleep, having fully worn herself out after an already exhausting day. Shinka gently stroked Sanae's hair, the quietness only broken by the sounds still coming from the bedroom next-door.
One cry in particular made Shinka smile. "Wow Midori, even I never called her Fuyumi." With that last thought, Shinka finally drifted off to sleep.
As the sun rose, Irisu Fuyumi slipped out of bed and threw open the curtains. Her naked body exposed to the world. Though being Christmas morning, no one was up that early to see her. Light flooded into the hotel room, causing the figure on the bed to shifty slightly in response. Midori wasn't the first girl Irisu had slept with, not by a long shot. She'd lost count of how many times she'd experienced this scene. Waking up in a bed with a girl she'd met the night before, a girl she may never see again. Midori was yet another in a long line, there would be many more after her.
However Irisu was troubled. In part because of the mysterious words of Megurine Luka, but mostly because when she looked at Midori, she realized she didn't want to see another girl in her bed tomorrow. She wanted to see Midori. Tomorrow, the next day, every day after that. She climbed back onto the bed, to sit next to Midori's sleeping form. She gently stroked the girl's pale orange hair. As she did so, the girl spoke in her sleep. Irisu only barely heard it, but it was enough.
"Fuyumi."
To Be Continued?