Another idea that just hit me because I was stuck on my story. Best to get these out before they overtake my brain. Expect sporadic updates and maybe not even too many at that. This is not a part of my Uta no Senshi fic universe. This is canon universe. Until Season 4 comes out, my brain is spitting this out.
Haruka shook her head, trying to convince herself this was only a dream. There was no way HEAVENS were really there, right?
She didn't notice her feet taking a step back until her stomach jumped into her throat as she began to fall.
The sudden lurch of someone catching her knocking the wind from her chest, but she was relieved nonetheless.
"That's dangerous. Don't the stage managers know those things need railings?" Haruka looked up at a young woman, probably around her age, with brown hair the color of dark chocolate and eyes holding a shade of blue like none she'd ever seen before. The girl's hair was braided on two sides of her head but left to hang down her back. She wore a pale blue denim dress, a silvery-white scarf, a brown belt and a pair of cowgirl boots and white tights finished the look. "You alright?" Haruka nodded and the girl helped her to her feet.
"Thank you very much…Um…If I may ask, you're Suzuki Rei-san, right? From HIKARI?" Haruka asked. "I think you went on just before STARISH." The girl, Rei, nodded.
"Yea. Most people just call me Rei. I'm glad you remembered us," she said with a smile. Rei then directed a glare towards the stage, where the names of three groups. Haruka bit her lip, not knowing what to say. Most of the people out there were girls, so it would make sense they'd cheer for three groups of rather attractive young men over a group of four young girls, even if they'd screamed for an encore when the girls left the stage.
"Of course I remembered you," Haruka said at last, bringing Rei's attention back to her. "Your group's song was really something else. Who wrote it?"
"HIKARI composes and performs all the music we have," Rei said with a shrug.
"The others are Suzuki Nagisa-san, Saito Makoto-san and Aika Alana-san, right?" Haruka asked. Rei nodded. "Pardon me for asking but is Nagisa-san your sister?"
"In a sense," Rei said with another shrug. On stage, one of the judges came up, asking for everyone to calm down so they could give the results. "I'd better get back to my group. See you around…" Haruka almost gasped, realizing she hadn't introduced herself.
"I'm very sorry! I'm Nanami Haruka. I'm STARISH's composer," she said as she extended her hand to Rei. The brunette smiled and shook her hand gently.
"Nice to meet you. And hey, whoever wins this, I say it's well-deserved." Rei smiled a little sadly as she walked away and Haruka couldn't help the heavy feeling now eating at her stomach and heart. Rei was talking as if she expected the winner to be one of the songs Haruka had composed, as if she stood no chance. While Haruka had almost always had a certain kind of faith in her music, she never wanted to make someone else feel like they had no chance.
Then the judge on stage did something that sent everyone into an uproar…
Otoya groaned as he flopped onto one of the many couches available in the lounge. The morning sun was beginning to peek in through the windows as the others joined him, his roommate having to tap him in order for Otoya to move over and allow others to sit down too. Haruka pulled up the piano bench and perched herself on the end.
"That was surprising," Masato commented, trying to keep sleep deprivation slip into his voice.
"This is too much like the UtaPri awards," Otoya yawned as he rubbed at a sleepy eye.
"Shining vs Raging, that's what they ought to call this at this point," Ren agreed with a heavy sigh. Haruka let out a small sigh.
The end result had been that there was going to be another contest soon where the top two companies were going head to head with their singing groups, meaning everyone else was excluded. All the other bands who were no supported by Raging Otori or Shining Saotome were never going to have a chance to be seen at the SSS.
Haruka's mind kept going back to Rei and how heartbroken she'd looked when the composer had managed to just catch a glimpse of her as the other groups were leaving. That look had kept her mildly distracted through the drive home and she wasn't aware of anyone talking to her until Ren snapped his fingers right under her nose.
"Eh?" she asked.
"Are you alright, Little Lamb? You seem to be out of it since we left." Haruka nodded quickly.
"I'm fine, I promise. I'm just a little tired is all," she assured as she stood up. "If you'll all excuse me. I'm going to bed now." With that, Haruka left the boys to themselves as she hurried up to her room.
No matter how much she tossed and turned on her bed, she couldn't fell asleep. Where once songs that lifted her heart could be heard, all she could hear were Rei's words that said for more than just, "I'm glad you remembered us." Whenever she closed her eyes, Rei's heart-broken face reappeared in her mind's eye, haunting her like a character from a horror movie.
After a couple hours, Haruka gave up on trying to sleep and slipped on her jacket and a pair of shoes.
She didn't know if the boys had decided to go to bed too, but just in case, she avoided the lounge as she made her way out.
The air was cooler than she remembered and a slight fog had rolled in, probably off the lake. Haruka heaved another sigh and strolled down the path, trying to clear her mind.
She lost track of how long she'd been walking when she heard the distinct rumble of an engine coming towards her.
She looked up to see a black smudge in the fog coming towards her. Haruka moved to the side of the road and watched as a large, black van passed her. She caught sight of a young girl, probably high school age, peeping out at her and waving. Haruka waved back as the van disappeared into the fog again but another engine's sound alerted her to look behind her again.
A black motorcycle came to a stop beside her and two riders were on the back. One was dressed in skinny black jeans, a dark top, black leather jacket and gloves and a black helmet. The other was dressed in an orange-red helmet and a matching jacket over a white top and blue jeans. Both wore black boots.
"What are you doing out here at this time in the morning?!" the more colorful rider asked.
"Just taking a walk," Haruka yelled over the engine's rumble.
"Want a lift anywhere?!" the darker rider asked. Haruka shook her head. "You sure?! Its cold this morning, I hate for you to get sick!" Haruka looked down at her skirt and then at the motorcycle. "If you're worried about riding in a skirt, I can help you out!" Haruka sighed and nodded, giving in to the rider's words.
"Hop on. You can keep both legs on one side if you like," said the more colorful rider. Haruka did as instructed and held onto the waist of the colorful rider as the black-clad one revved the engine and they took off towards the Master Course dorms.
As they pulled up, Haruka caught sight of the black van from before. A young man with dark, curly hair and dark eyes and a warm tan was taking boxes from a young lady with similar features as she took them from the van.
The motorcycle came to a stop on the opposite side and the driver put the kickstand down before slipping off the seat. Haruka hopped off and brushed off her skirt as the last cyclist stretched and slid off as well.
"As usual, a perfectly safe drive, curtesy of Rei!" the colorful cyclist cheered as she pulled off her helmet and shook out her red-auburn-brown hair. Her eyes were a warm amber-golden-brown color and Haruka gasped.
"You-you're…" The cyclist smiled.
"Oh sorry. We haven't introduced ourselves. I'm Suzuki Nagisa and this-"
"Nanami-san and I met last night, Nagisa," said the last cyclist as she pulled off her helmet, revealing long, dark-chocolate-colored hair and bright blue eyes.
"Suzuki-san!" Haruka started. Rei smiled.
"Nanami-san, please just call me Rei. If you need to add an honorific, chan will do fine. I've never been one for formality." Rei set her helmet on the bike and moved around to the other side of the van. "Hanako, Sousuke, need any help?"
"We've got this, thank you though Rei," said a female voice, which Haruka could only guess belonged to the dark-haired girl unloading the van.
"Makoto, Alana, Myra, and Kyoko are all inside. Why don't you join them?" said a male voice. Rei nodded and looked at Nagisa and Haruka.
"Anyone want to go inside?" she asked as she headed towards the doors. Haruka and Nagisa followed her quickly.
"Um…Su….Rei-san…If you don't mind my asking…why are you here?" Haruka asked before Rei reached the door.
"After what happened last night, Shining Saotome approached us and asked if we wanted to be supported by Shining agency. We accepted and…here we are." Rei opened the door and slipped inside.
"Did he mention why?" Haruka asked. Rei shrugged.
"Whatever his reasons were, we're thankful for another shot at the SSS," Nagisa said with a broad smile. "Ne, Nee-san?" Rei smirked as Nagisa jumped and clung to her arm, almost knocking Rei off balance.
"Yea, yea," Rei said with a chuckle as she pulled Nagisa up and stepped into the kitchen. "Are you hungry Nanami-san? Nagisa is a great cook."
"I agree full-heartedly!" came another voice. Haruka jumped and spun around to see four girls seated at the island. One was dressed in jeans and a hot pink blouse. Her hair was up in a bun and was so dark, Haruka couldn't tell if it was black or simply black. Her eyes were the same story, too dark too clearly see the color.
The second girl was the high school-age girl Haruka had seen in the van. She had black curls and violet eyes and wore a white top and a denim skirt with a red and gold floral design on the side. The third girl had bright green-blue eyes and deep brown hair, almost matching Rei's shade but only a slight bit lighter. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she wore a deep emerald-colored top with her jeans and brown boots. The final girl wore her hair in a braid down her back, tied off with a golden-brown ribbon. She wore a dress with a brown top and thin straps on her shoulders. The skirt was green with a very beautiful, multi-colored design centered with a blue, eight-pointed star. A pale green scarf hung off her tanned arms and her brown eyes were looking all around the kitchen.
"Nanami-san, if you don't mind, I'm going to start cooking," Nagisa said as she slipped by Haruka and opened the refrigerator. "Would you like to eat with us?" Haruka nodded. "I'll be making eggs. How do you like yours?"
"Umm…Over easy?"
"Coming up!" Nagisa cheered as she pulled a pan off the rack overhanging the island and turned on the stove. "Anyone else have any special requests?"
"Regular for the rest of us, Nagsia," said the girl with the bun. She looked at Haruka and smiled warmly. "Hello there. I don't believe we've met." Rei stepped forward and gave Haruka a slight push from behind.
"Nanami-san, this is Saito Makoto," she gestured to the girl who'd spoken, "Yamazuki Kyoko-" The younger of the group smiled and waved, revealing a set of braces on her teeth. "Aika Alana-" The girl with the green-blue eyes bowed deeply. "and Taiyou Myra." The girl in the dress smiled and bowed her head.
"Nice to meet all of you. I'm Nanami Haruka, composer for STARISH," Haruka said with a deep bow.
"It's wonderful to meet you, Nanami-san," Makoto said tenderly, as if speaking to a frightened baby animal.
"You wrote the song STARISH sang last night, right?" Kyoko asked.
"Yes, I am. I also wrote the song QUARTET NIGHT and HEAVENS sang last night." Kyoko's eyes went wide.
"So you're-"
"Kyoko," Makoto scolded and Kyoko shut her mouth, covering it with her hands. "All those songs were magnificent."
"Indeed, I even found myself moved heart and soul when I heard them," Myra said pleasantly.
"Yep. Only the Muses could've done better," Alana agreed.
"Who's talking about the Muses?" asked a yawning Cecil as he walked in. "And what smells so good?" he asked as he stopped just before he could stumble into the countertop.
"That would be my cooking, Aijima-san," Nagisa said with a proud smile. Cecil glanced at her before covering another yawn. "Want some? I'm making eggs."
"Thank you…I might have to accept," he said as he ended his yawn.
"Be careful, I've heard yawning is contagious," Alana said with a smirk. Cecil's eyes went wide and he looked up at the smirking girl.
"Alana?!"
"Hello Cecil," she said with a tilt of the head.
"What are you doing here?!" he asked, face going a little pale under his tan.
"The same thing you are, Your Highness," Myra said gently, straightening her scarf around her shoulders.
"Myra?!" Cecil looked between the two girls with a face that could only be compared to a fish on the riverbank.
"Cecil-san, do you know these two?" Haruka asked. Alana looked at Haruka stunned then shot an angry glare at Cecil.
"How could you not tell her about us?!" Alana snapped, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting a little. Rei smiled a little and put a hand on her friend's shoulder.
"Then maybe you should tell her," Rei said with a playful smirk. Alana nodded, not having taken her eyes of Cecil.
"My name Aika is only for on stage. In reality, my name is Aijima Alana, Princess of Agnapolis and elder sister to Prince Cecil!"
"EH?!" Haruka gasped, looking from Cecil to his…sister.
Justie: How was that? I like this little twist. LOL. Can't wait to see more about these girls. Anyone got something to say? Please leave a review!
