Disclaimer: I, Phoenixflames19, wish to clarify that the anime/manga/video game(s), THE iDOLMSTER, are the property of outside companies (A-1 Pictures, Namco Bandai Games, etc) and claim no ownership of the characters.

Spoiler: There will be a song in this chapters that readers may find familar, especially those "fans" who had played THE iDOLMSTER 2, the game. The lyrics will remain in romanji format.

Note(s): I apologize for not updating for a short while. It's because of the lack of reviews. They are important, as they assist in improving writing skills, keeping protagonists and antagonists in "character," and the plot. Without reviews, I cannot upload any more chapters.

I've also done the best to my ability to keep the canon characters in "character," as in personality, behaviors, interests, etc. That is why I require you, the readers, to lend me your assistance. Notify me of the errors so that I will correct them.

Let me know if there are some changes in Japanese honorifics, as neither man nor woman is perfect in initiating anything.

Without further delay, proceed with the read and review for this chapter.

Chapter 6 Aggravating Ignorance

It had not been long since Kamei's unanticipated debut in 765 Pro. Only a week had gone by. To President Takagi, he was a beacon of hope. But to others, some of them believe it was certainly a mistake. Just by his appearance, they had already given their utmost honest opinion about him.

Somewhere in the building of 765 Pro, there was the continuous sound of warm-up vocalization and instrumental orchestration. They were simultaneously forming a musical pattern of an arpeggio, one after another. Each time a sequence was completed another one takes its place at a slightly higher tone.

The basic, yet harmonious tune was originating from the small vocal room within the production company. Inside, there were three young female vocalists practicing their singing voices along with the piano being played by a man. Besides them, the room was cluttering with multiple instruments, tables, and chairs.

The girls wore athletic jackets and sweatpants, each matching to their image colors: Blue, Green, and Red. The one in the middle was Chihaya. She wore a suit with the shaded color of her hair. The one next to her left was Miki, who wore a lime green color. And the last girl in red, on the right, was Haruka.

The usual female instructor that President Takagi employed had not arrived at the company. Due to his skill and newly instated profession of co-producer, Kamei had no choice but to reluctantly cover for the instructor.

Kamei delighted in playing the piano but now that it was part of his job, it was very displeasing for him. The orchestration was deadening since the session was only vocal practice. He would rather compose an actual song.

I'm getting bored… Kamei thought, unintentionally bobbing his head in a fatigued manner. He was almost falling asleep. The only intriguing melody that was keeping him awake was the in-tune vocals of the young girls.

There were three sequences remaining, and the girls were about to vocalize again until the arpeggio converted into a completely different, yet familiar tune. The sudden alteration caused the girls to pause in confusion as he continued to play the Super Mario Bros. Overworld theme in piano version.

The girls slowly turned their heads and stared at him. Haruka and Miki were baffled before becoming overwhelmed by wonderful astonishment. The peppy and catchy tune stimulated them to bob their heads and tap their feet along with the rhythm, and with bright smiles.

However, only Chihaya remain puzzled. She could not formulate any reason as to why Kamei was not performing the arpeggio, and instead was orchestrating a video game medley. Eventually, she became slightly irritated by his ignorance.

"Kamei! What is the meaning of this?" Chihaya exclaimed. Her voice was blaring enough to interrupt Kamei's composition, and Haruka and Miki's line of dancing.

Kamei angled his head slightly and glanced at Chihaya. "Did I make a mistake in one of the cues?"

Chihaya positioned her hands on her hips and glared at him bitterly. "Mistake? We're supposed to be practicing!"

"That's what I'm doing…" he said.

She became more irritated. "No, Kamei. We're the ones practicing. You're supposed to be playing the piano for the instructor."

"…Hmm." Kamei shifted his eyes away momentarily, before looking back to Chihaya with a smile. "…Good point."

"Honestly…" Chihaya turned away and returned to her position with Haruka and Miki. Twirling, she looked at Kamei again.

Kamei murmured a chortle from his throat.

Although it was a light cackle, Chihaya still managed to perceive the irritating noise. "W-What's so funny?" she demanded, glaring at him icily.

"Oh, it's nothing," he replied, oblivious about her cold demeanor. "Try to lighten up a bit. Only amateurs would get worked up for something very little of value."

The way how Kamei expressed his words, made her nerves cringed. "A-Are you insulting me?"

Haruka, stunned by Chihaya's acrimonious behavior, quickly attempted to console the tension. "C-Chihaya-san, please calm down! I'm sure he didn't mean it like that!" she said in a slightly exaggerated tone.

Miki tilted her head slightly, pondering about Kamei's message. "Miki thinks that Kamei is being a little mean to Chihaya-san."

"Was I, really?" Kamei asked, scratching near his ear. "I guess I was a little harsh." He attempted to recall the moment he supposedly offended her, but the memory immediately departed from his mind.

"Um…" He paused again, trying to formulate an answer to relieve Chihaya of her anger. All he could verbalize was an apology. "…Sorry about that, Chihaya. Forget what I said earlier. I'll treat to you something nice when we're done," he said.

Haruka and Miki turned to Chihaya with smiles on the faces. "See, Chihaya-san? He was only kidding!" Haruka said, her heart filled with solace.

Miki nodded with Haruka's statement. "Kamei isn't so bad at all. He's a better bum than others Miki has seen."

Kamei lowered his head until the shadows covered his eyes, and formed a reserved grin. There's that term again… He was neither annoyed, nor did not feel any infliction for being called a bum, but the fact was on how often people consider him as one.

Chihaya glanced at him once more before jerking her head away in aversion. "Ku… Forget it. Let's just proceed to the end so we can attend to our recital."

"…Understood," Kamei replied.

With the short dilemma concluded, Kamei and the girls continued with their vocal practice. Like before, Kamei could not help but to bob his sleepy head throughout the tedious and redundant musical sequences.


An hour had elapsed, and the vocal routine had nearly reached its conclusion.

Chihaya, Haruka, and Miki were currently rehearsing a song. The piece that they were harmonizing was "My Song," with the accompaniment of Kamei playing the piano version.

Start kono My Life Song
watashi no utagoe de
dokomade mo hibike
Feel kanjiru mama
sukina MERODII de ii
sore wo kokoro to yobou
Stay kono My Love Song
EERU kureru hito yo
ai wo kome okurou
Shine kagayaite
nee shiawase are
ima ashita ga umareru

As soon as they were about to finish, Kamei completely dozed off. His face bumped on the piano keys, and sounded an out of tune melody that alerted the girls. The abrupt changes of keys even woke Kamei from his short slumber in an instant.

"…I must've dozed off," Kamei said, raising his head off the piano. He was unaware that Haruka and Miki were giggling behind his back.

"That was a little funny," Haruka spoke softly to Miki.

Miki smiled, and waved her hand outward in a pistol shape. "But Kamei has the right idea!" Unable to restrain herself, she covered her mouth and yawned. "Afu… Miki's going to take a nap now."

Chihaya sighed in slight displeasure. She was discomposed that the song was rudely interrupted by Kamei's habit of falling asleep, and that she was unable to complete it. In the end, he is not focused. What was Shachou thinking?

She turned to Haruka and Miki with a stern expression. "Haruka, Miki, it's time that we attend to our recital now."

Haruka and Miki replied with a nod. Shifting to Kamei, they bowed in respect. "Thank you for your help."

Kamei turned his eyes away and placed on a nonchalant expression. "It's no big deal."

Chihaya stood her ground and remained silent, looking away from her co-producer. "…Let's go," she finally said.

With that, Haruka and Miki departed from the vocal room first, leaving Chihaya and Kamei. As Chihaya was about to excuse herself, Kamei stood up from his chair and approached her.

"Allow me to escort—"

"I am sorry, Kamei. We can handle it on our own. Please, avoid getting in our away," she immediately said, interrupting Kamei.

"…I see." Kamei, unfazed by her strict tone of voice, placed his hands into his pockets and smiled casually. "Have a safe trip, Chihaya."

Avoiding eye contact, Chihaya answered him with a silent nod, and walked out of the vocal room, closing the door behind her.

Now, Kamei was left alone. No longer having any business in his current location, he covered the piano with a drapery and exited the room. While walking down the stairs, he had a thought. Well, that was a rough start…


A muffled chatter was emanating from the dressing room in the first floor of 765 Pro. Inside, the three girls that had left the vocal room, Chihaya, Haruka, and Miki, were changing into their casual outfits.

"Chihaya-chan? Are you feeling all right?" Haruka asked, inserting an azure blue, shoulderless sleeved shirt over her head.

Chihaya turned to her. "Yes, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"Well…" Haruka paused, and pulled the shirt down until her head emerged out from the collar. Sighing in relief, she smiled and proceeded to explain her reasoning. "Well, you were really angry about Akimoto-san earlier."

When she heard that name, Chihaya became agitated. Ceasing from placing on her white buttoned shirt, she turned her head away and shut her eyes, trying her best not to show her discontent expression. "Please, Haruka. I prefer not to recollect my thoughts about him," she said in her usual cool and serious tone.

Regardless, Haruka still managed to receive a glimpse of Chihaya's emotional distress about Kamei. In response, she withdrew her nosiness and said, "O-Oh. Sorry, Chihaya-san."

Chihaya slowly opened her eyes and gave Haruka a quick glance. "You have to wonder why Shachou resulted to such a decision…"

"I'm sure he had a good reason," Haruka said.

After a short moment of silence, Chihaya shifted her eyes to the floor. "If that were so easy to believe…" she said, with her voice low and calm.

"Hmm…" Haruka paused, and started to contemplate on what Chihaya implied. But her train of thought was immediately interrupted when she turned and witnessed Miki sleeping on the bench.

Miki mumbled some words. "Honey… Miki wants… some onigiri…" she murmured slowly. Then, she giggled and smiled. "Aha… Thank you… Honey…" She seemed to be enjoying her pleasant dream.

When Haruka observed Miki's half-dressed body, she became stunned. "E-Eh? Miki! Wake up! You can't fall asleep at a time like this!" She approached and attempted to wake her.

Chihaya, having watched the entire situation, simply sighed and turned away. "Why does her behavior remind me of him?" she said to herself, slightly aggravated. She had adapted to Miki's usual mannerism throughout her career as an idol, but would sometimes become disputed by her behavior.

Putting on the rest of her clothes, Chihaya headed for the door. "I'll be at the main entrance. Please hurry, for time is of the essence." With that, she exited the dressing room.


Hours had passed until the day turned to night. The streets of Tokyo were filled with the cold melodramatic darkness until it vanquished by amorous illuminating lights, turning the industrious city into a dazzling radiance. Everyone had returned home to relieve themselves and laze away into a well-earned slumber, except for two certain people who had remained behind in 765 Pro to have an important discussion.

"Takagi-Shachou, are you crazy?" the woman with the spectacles protested, her voice loud and strictly harsh.

The woman, Ritsuko Akizuki, never had an opportunity to have an important discussion with President Takagi due to her laborious schedule. President Takagi was still occupied in his office, and tonight was Ritsuko's only chance to speak her mind.

President Takagi glanced at his fellow young producer in astonishment. "Hm? You've never addressed me in such a way, unless it was truly serious…"

"Yes, Takagi-Shachou. It is serious," Ristuko replied as she crossed her arms to her chest, walking towards his desk. "I apologize for my inappropriate behavior. But are you really certain about Akimoto-dono being a co-producer?"

"Of course, I am certain," President Takagi responded, nodding. "Do you doubt his abilities?"

"W-Well, I am perfectly fine with him being our renovator but as a co-producer? He does not seem very reliable."

President Takagi paused for a moment to contemplate on what Ritsuko stated. "…Hmm. Indeed, he does not look like the kind of man to perform such a role… but I am pretty confident. He is no different than our Producer." Picking up a document, he began to analyze it while speaking. "I've seen his resume. It's quite impressive to be honest."

Ritsuko widened her eyes and parted her mouth in astoundment. "W-What? Really? I had no idea…"

President Takagi tossed the resume back on his desk and clasped his hands together. "Ritsuko-kun, I know how you feel about him, but give him a chance. He may surprise you in a positive perspective."

Ritsuko lifted her arm, grasped her chin and her fingers covered her mouth, posing as if she was thinking. "…I suppose he has some value to the company."

"Even though I've told him he does not need to begin with the renovation project, he is still does it anyway," President Takagi said, rubbing his thumb with the other.

Ritsuko nodded her head. "Yeah, I saw. Since he is our new co-producer, he mustn't neglect his duties."

"Indeed."

"Anyways, I have some work to do, so please excuse me." With a slight bow, Ritsuko turned and exited President Takagi's office.

When the door closed, the office became soundless, except for the low, steady circulation of the air conditioner at President Takagi's window.

He sighed in depression. "Ritsuko-kun had changed ever since Ryuuguu Komachi had won the Idol Academy last year. Even the Producer isn't the same as he was before. I worry for the well-being of my staff…"

~End of Chapter~

Note: If you suspect other errors, please inform me so I may correct them.

© 2011 Phoenixflames19