This is a oneshot for my friend on tumblr crimson-shell!

I do not own Aikatsu Stars!

~0~

Ako shuffled down the path while setting the aviators on her face, dressed in a navy blue plaid dress with a bag over her shoulders, a matching headband in her hair that was in a single braid. She made her way through the S4 gardens, where Yume, Mahiru, and Laura were gathered. Ako made her presence, "I'm going out."

Yume looked up, then nodded, "Ah! Okay! See you later!"

Mahiru and Laura waved and Ako ducked out of the area.

Koharu came back to the table, carrying a tray with four glasses filled with juice. "Was that Ako?"

Mahiru nodded, helping her with the tray. "Mhm. It's the second Saturday of the month already, huh?"

"Yup," Laura said.

Yume blinked, "What are you talking about?"

Koharu turned to Yume, confused, "You haven't noticed?"

"Noticed what?" Yume repeated.

Laura huffed, "Of course she hasn't noticed."

Mahiru sighed, "Yume, haven't you noticed that Ako goes out on every other Saturday around eleven?"

Yume paused, turning her gaze up to think, "I might have? Now that you mention it?"

Koharu giggled, "Oh, Yume."

Yume put a finger to her chin, "So what's she doing?"

Laura shrugged, "Who knows?" She took a sip of her juice.

"You don't know?" Yume asked.

Mahiru shook her head, "She didn't tell us, and we haven't asked her."

"Well I wanna know!" Yume cried.

"Then ask," Laura retorted.

"But she already left," Yume moaned.

Koharu nodded, "She's probably making it to the gates now."

Yume flopped over the table, pouting.

"Yume," Laura scoffed.

Yume gasped and sat up suddenly, surprising the others, "I got it!"

"Got what?" Mahiru tersely asked.

Yume jumped out of her seat, "Let's go see where she's going!"

"You mean follow her?" Laura cried.

Yume nodded, starting to run off, "Yea! Come on!"

"We can't follow Ako!" Koharu called, but Yume was already off.

Mahiru and Laura shot up in a flutter and were after Yume in a moment. They shared a look, before Mahiru said, "To be fair, we have followed Yume before."

Laura deadpanned, "True…"

Koharu was coming up from behind them, "Wait for me!"

Luckily, they made it to Yume, who decided to stop and wait for them.

Yume pumped her arms, "Okay! Time to find out what Ako's been doing all this time!"

They sighed at her, but more hesitantly agreed.

~0~

Kanata came around the corner, making his way through the common room to the door. He glanced back and did a quick wave, "I'm off. Bye."

"Bye!" Asahi waved from his position on the sofa.

As soon as the door closed, Nozomu came into the room from the kitchen. "Kanata left again?"

Subaru nodded, not looking up from his mobile.

Nozomu sat down on the sofa, "What do you suppose he does?"

Asahi hummed, his face turning serious, "He goes out every other Saturday around this time… he has to be doing something."

Subaru shrugged, scrolling through his mobile, "Eh, I'm sure it's nothing."

Nozomu glanced at Asahi, seeing the serious expression on his face. He grinned, "I think Detective Pinky Cat should get on the case."

Asahi perked up and smirked at Nozomu.

Subaru's head snapped up, "Pinky Cat? For what?"

Asahi stood up and tutted him, "Oh Subaru. It's time we find what Kanata's been up to!"

"Why?" Subaru said again, "He's been doing this practically since we met. What does it matter?"

"Exactly!" Asahi pointed a finger in Subaru's face, "And he's never told us anything about it!"

Subaru pushed the offending limb out of his way roughly, "And have you ever asked?"

Asahi wavered, "Uh, well.. He could lie! You know how Kanata is!"

Nozomu stood up, "Then this is the perfect opportunity to catch the truth."

"Huh?" Subaru gasped, "Are you really agreeing to spy on him?"

"We aren't going to be spying!" Asahi said, "It's just witnessing the truth!"

Subaru deadpanned, "Are you ser-"

Asahi snatched Subaru's arm, pulling him to the door, "Hush now! Detective Pinky Cat is on the case!"

Nozomu quickly followed, closing the door behind them as they exited.

"He couldn't have gone far," Asahi said, "Let's hurry to the gate!" He let go of Subaru and rushed ahead, Nozomu following and Subaru more hesitantly.

When they made it to the gate, they looked out on the road, spotting Kanata in his grey hoodie and plaid overshirt all the way at the end of the road, near the town.

Asahi nodded, "Great, now we have eyes on him!"

"Great," Subaru drawled, "then let's go back." He spun on his heel, but Asahi grabbed him and spun him around.

"All we know is that he's going into town! We don't know why!" Asahi said, pulling Subaru again.

Nozomu laughed as the two continued bickering.

Asahi pulled them down behind some bushes in the plaza as they kept their eyes on Kanata.

Nozomu hummed, "It's getting kinda crowded. We'd better keep a close eye on him."

Asahi agreed.

"Oh," Subaru gasped suddenly, "look," he pointed behind them, where a music shop was, "our new ad is up."

Nozomu and Asahi turned to look.

"Oh!" Asahi cooed, "It looks really nice!"

Nozomu nodded in agreement at the poster of their recent photoshoot.

After glancing it over, Asahi turned back to the plaza, only to find that he lost Kanata. He gasped, "He's gone!"

Nozomu and Subaru followed his gaze, also seeing that their glasses wearing friend had disappeared among the mess of people.

Asahi jumped out from the bushes and yelled into the air loudly, "No!"

"Quiet, Asahi!" Subaru hissed, smiling uneasily at strangers who gave them odd stares.

Nozomu walked forward, leading the two to follow him. "He couldn't have gone far," he said.

Asahi rubbed his chin, "Maybe he's going somewhere around here?"

Subaru deadpanned at the blond's switch of emotions. "Yea. Well, since we lost him, and we're down here anyways, I think I'll go to the music shop."

"Wait!" Asahi called. "I'm sure we'll find him!" He looked at Nozomu.

Nozomu shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe we should take a break and look in a bit? I actually want to see the shop, too."

Asahi pouted, but gave in, "Okay fine. But we'll look again in a few."

"Sure," Subaru said, sticking his hands into his pockets and strolling into the music shop.

Asahi narrowed his eyes at the tone.

Nozomu put a hand on Asahi's shoulder, "Come on."

Asahi huffed, but followed.

~0~

"So… why did we take a car again?" Laura asked.

Yume was staring out the window, "Because I wanted to get here before Ako did!" She pointed out the window, instructing their driver to let them off there.

The girls got out of the car, and stood on the sidewalk.

Mahiru put her hands on her hips, "Great. But now we don't know where Ako is."

Yume opened her mouth to respond, but found that she had nothing to reply with.

Mahiru and Laura deadpanned.

Koharu laughed awkwardly, "I guess we should just walk around and see if Ako has made it?"

Yume nodded, "Ah! Good idea, Koharu!"

They all began carefully walking down the sidewalk as people passed all around them.

"Hm, there sure are a lot of people," Koharu commented.

"Well just keep an eye out for Ako. She was wearing a blue dress." Mahiru said.

They kept looking left and right, when Laura shouted, "There she is!"

They followed her finger, finding the redhead gazing down at her phone as she steadily walked the sidewalk.

"Where is she going?" Laura mused aloud.

Yume nodded, "Okay, keep an eye on her, we can trail her from here." She trained her eye on Ako, even as people passed and she blinked away from sight for moments.

Yume tilted her head the other way from a moment, giving her eyes a break from staring in the same direction. As she did, something glinted off the window display beside her, making her fully turn her head on the direction. What she saw caused her to gasp softly. She reached out and tugged on the closest figure to her. "Look," she whispered.

Mahiru frowned as she followed Yume's gaze, "What-" she froze as she spied the dress at the window, "Oh."

Laura and Koharu turned when they noticed them frozen in front of a window.

"Uh?" Laura voiced, "Are you guys… okay?"

Yume kept her gaze on the dress, "Koharu, look! It's so pretty!" She reached for the girl's hand, pulling her into the shop, "Let's check it out!"

Mahiru nodded silently, zipping inside the shop behind them.

"What the- you guys!" Laura gasped as she raced after them.

~0~

Subaru stepped out of the shop with a small package in his hands. With him, Nozomu came out with nothing, and Asahi with something in a bag that he didn't see.

"So where to now?" Nozomu asked.

Asahi pointed forward, "Now we gotta find Kanata!"

"Ugh," Subaru groaned.

Asahi chose to ignore him. "He should be around somewhere…"

Nozomu shrugged and began walking ahead, "We'll just have to walk around and see, then."

Asahi nodded, striding forward, looking back and forth around the people. A slight breeze blew past them, ruffling the hair near his ear as voices swept past it. He stopped as one stuck out to him.

"Did you hear that?" Asahi asked, snapping his head towards the sound.

Nozomu and Subaru turned to him.

"No?" Subaru said, "Hear what?"

Asahi ignored him again, instead following the sound. Nozomu and Subaru trailed behind.

What he found at the end of his trail made him stop once again. Someone grabbed his arm and yanked him down behind a potted plant.

Nozomu, Subaru, and Asahi peered over the edge of the bushes together. Their eyes rested on their green haired friend as he sat at an outside table of a cafe. He was laughing, and was sitting with a pretty girl across from him.

"Oh my gosh…" Subaru gasped. "Kanata's laughing…"

Nozomu added, "He looks so carefree…"

"He- he's with a girl!" Asahi cried. "Kanata has a girlfriend! And he never told us!"

Nozomu and Subaru both looked equally surprised.

"Maybe that's not his girlfriend?" Subaru tried.

"Then why does he look so happy?" Asahi retorted, then pointed at him, "Does that look like a face you wouldn't give to a girlfriend?"

Subaru opened his mouth, but then shut it. "Er, well she looks familiar?"

Asahi turned back to the girl, eyeing her face and red hair.

Nozomu hummed, "Isn't that Ako Saotome?"

"Ako Saotome!" Asahi gasped, "It is!" he stumbled back, "I can't believe it!"

"Oh wow… that, uh, this is surprising," Subaru stated. "Isn't she the girl that was in Tsubasa's last movie?"

"It is!" Asahi repeated.

"Relax Asahi," Nozomu said, pulling Asahi down a little bit, "We should keep an eye on him for a little longer."

Asahi nodded and straightened up, "You're right. We don't have enough evidence. Cameras out!" He held up his camera and hit record.

~0~

"Ah… we got really cute clothes!" Yume cheered happily.

"And for such a good deal, too," Mahiru added, admiring the contents of her own bag.

Laura stared at them from her perch against the side of the building, arms crossed, "So, are you done?"

Yume nodded, "Yes, I think so."

"Good," Laura retorted, "because while you were shopping, I lost eyes on Ako."

Mahiru frowned, "Why didn't you follow?"

Koharu tilted her head, "Is that a bag?" She stared at the bag that was mostly hidden behind Laura's arm.

Laura jerked backwards, revealing the bag even more, "No!"

Yume smirked, "Oh, what'd you get?"

Laura turned red, stuttering, "Uh, m-maybe I did. There was a really cute pair of leggings!"

Mahiru laughed, "I can't blame you, I got a new pair too."

Koharu stepped forward, "Okay, so now… where do we look for Ako?"

They frowned, thinking.

Yume's stomach grumbled, and their heads snapped to her. Yume laughed awkwardly, "Lunch time?"

Koharu laughed, while Laura sighed.

"Okay, let's check out the cafes," Laura said.

"Yes!" Yume cheered, hurrying down the path to the food shops area.

"Oh," Koharu said, "I heard of this cafe from our classmates. It should be around here somewhere…" Looking around, she finally pointed at a cafe with a sweet looking exterior. "There it is!"

Yume stopped in her tracks as she looked over the cafe, causing Mahiru and Laura to bump into her from behind.

"Oy, Yume," Laura grumbled.

"What is it now?" Mahiru asked.

Yume slowly lifted her finger, "It's Ako!"

The two girls quickly moved around Yume to follow her gaze.

"Oh my gosh," Laura whispered, staring at their redhead friend sitting at a table outside the cafe.

"Is that… Kanata from M4?" Mahiru muttered.

Koharu nodded, "It looks like him."

"I didn't know they were friends…" Yume said.

"They look like more than friends to me," Laura huffed.

"More than friends?" Yume blinked. "What does that mean?"

Laura and Mahiru sent her shocked expressions.

Koharu laughed awkwardly, "Uh, as in they're dating, Yume."

"Dating!" Yume gasped. "Ako… has a boyfriend?"

Laura turned back, "It sure looks like it."

"What should we do now?" Mahiru asked, still staring at the couple.

Yume looked over her shoulder, "I guess we can eat here. I don't want to bother them…"

"And then we'll go back?" Koharu asked.

Yume jumped, "No! We're just gonna eat here and stay out of their way, until they leave, of course. Then we'll follow them again."

Laura deadpanned, "Brilliant plan."

Yume nodded to herself. "It is! Come on, let's eat!"

Koharu smiled, following Yume in.

Mahiru and Laura exchanged a look.

"Okay fine," Laura gave in, "what's the worst that can happen?"

Mahiru stared at her, then shrugged, the two following the others inside the cafe.

~0~

Kanata sighed as he heard the park bushes rustle behind him again. He stopped in his tracks, his arm tugged forward as Ako didn't notice and continued forward. She stopped when she jerked back against her movement.

Kanata used the motion of her turning to bring her close to him.

Ako turned bright red, "Wh-What's this about?"

Kanata stared at her face for a moment, before sighing again, "The truth is… my unit mates have been following us for a while."

Ako's expression flicked to surprise.

"Sorry," Kanata said.

Ako shifted her legs and glanced away for a moment, "No, actually… my friends have been behind us for a while too."

Kanata stared at her in surprise.

Ako closed her eyes, a grin spreading on her face as she laughed.

Her smile spread to Kanata's face, "Looks like we got caught."

"It took them long enough," Ako said.

Kanata leaned close, his voice lowering to a whisper, "Let's give them a show before they decide to finally show up."

Ako blushed but met his kiss sweetly.

Two bursts of energy shot out from behind both of them as they separated.

Yume pointed a finger at Ako, "So it is true!"

Asahi cried from behind Kanata, "You tricked us!"

Kanata calmly turned, "I don't recall tricking you."

"He has a point," Nozomu pitched in.

Asahi screamed as he fell to his knees. "I can't even!"

Kanata and Ako deadpanned.

Yume blinked, "Huh? Subaru? What are you guys doing here?"

Ako hissed at Yume, jumping in her face, "Why were you following me?"

Yume yelped, "Ah! Sorry! We wanted to know what you were doing!"

"You didn't even ask me!" Ako shouted, putting her hands on her hips. "If you had, I would have told you!"

They had the right to look as upset as they did.

"We're sorry, Ako," Yume repeated.

"Really sorry," Laura added.

Ako huffed, crossing her arms. "I don't know if your act of treason was high enough for me to hold a grudge. Therefore, you are forgiven."

Yume lit up, then leapt at Ako, grabbing her in a hug, "Yay! Thank you Ako!"

Laura, Mahiru, and Koharu crowded together in the hug.

"So, we want all the details," Laura whispered for them to hear with a smirk.

Ako turned red at her words then started squirming, "No details! No more hugging either!"

Kanata snickered at his girlfriend, then faced his own friends with a raised eyebrow. "And what's your excuse?"

"The same?" Subaru asked more than stated.

Kanata looked at him with disbelief.

"Okay so, maybe not," Subaru cowered.

"It really is," Nozomu said. "Asahi wanted to know what you were up to, and then Detective Pinky Cat came out."

Kanata face palmed.

Asahi dusted off his knees, "Sorry Kanata. We should have asked you if we wanted to know. Instead, we invaded your privacy."

"You did," Kanata agreed, making the boys glance down in shame. "And you should know that your blackmail won't work on me because I'm not embarrassed to be with Ako."

Asahi, Nozomu, and Subaru looked up at Kanata in shock.

"Wh-What?" Subaru gasped.

"Does that mean you forgive us?" Nozomu asked.

"Nooo!" Asahi cried, "All this and of course our blackmail won't work!"

Kanata snickered, then turned to grab Ako's hand, pulling her away from the girls. "If you don't mind," he spoke loudly, "my girlfriend and I are going to continue with our date."

Ako blushed, scooting close to Kanata and whispering, "Really?"

"We were on our way back but now we'll be out for another hour," he added, walking away with Ako, who gave a quick wave to everyone in farewell.

The remaining group watched as the couple walked out of the park.

"Well that just happened," Laura commented.

"He confirmed it! They are dating!" Asahi shouted.

Mahiru frowned at Asahi, "Big brother, you need to calm down."

Yume smiled, "Oh! Now that we're all out here, how about we hang around together?"

Subaru shrugged, "Sounds fine to me. We basically spent our whole day anyways."

Nozomu smirked at Subaru, "Are you sure that's the reason?"

Subaru started blushing, then shoved him, "Shut up, Nozomu."

Asahi grinned, "Hey Mahiru, Koharu! Do you want to play on the swings?"

Mahiru paused, "The swings?"

Koharu smiled, "It has been a while. That sounds like fun."

Mahiru shrugged, "Okay."

Laura shrugged to herself, "Well I'm just gonna go back to school."

"I'll join you," Nozomu said, then glanced back at Subaru, "I have some work left so I'll be off."

Subaru nodded, "Okay, I'll see you later."

Yume smiled at Subaru, "So… do you want to go somewhere?"

"Do you have somewhere in mind?" Subaru questioned.

Yume shook her head, "Nothing in particular."

Subaru shrugged, "Nah, I don't. So whatever will work for me."

"I think I saw a poster for something happening live in the center today," Yume said, "Let's go!"

Subaru sent a glance backwards at everyone who was retreating for a moment, then turned and followed Yume, "Alright."

~0~

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Leave a review! ^^