All I can say is, you guys will be calling me a "slowpoke" for a multitude of reasons. I just want to say that I WILL be making up for this.
Disclaimer: Lucky Star is property of Yoshimizu Kagami and Kyoto Animation and is licensed by Bandai Entertainment. They all need to be a little kinder to the English Audience as well.
"Everybody, GET IN HERE!" President Takahashi screamed as he turned on the public speakers.
Without warning, the members of Nanashi and many of the workers of Animate filled the room. From the executives, to the shareholders, to the people working on the floor, everyone was there to listen to their president. Every time he summoned the company into his single office, something monumental was about to occur.
"Is everyone here?!" He shouted.
"Yes, here boss, here, YES!" Various people in the crowd said.
"Excellent then..." He said, before coughing. In one second, the room shifted as Takahashi's eyes literally filled with tears as he shouted at the team. "WE ARE BEING SUED!"
Many people were taken back like a dangerous secret was discovered about them. "What?!" The members of staff shouted.
"I'm afraid it's true…" Takahashi spoke solemnly.
"WHY IS THIS HAPPENING!?" Meito shouted in panic.
"The creators of the game, they saw our recent music video, and believe that it is copyright infringement…" The president threw the official papers on his desk. "IT'S ALL IN BLACK AND WHITE! THEY BELIEVE THEY HAVE A CLEAR CUT CASE!"
Workers of Animate began to act hysterically. The anime industry was already having problems with the low pay to all workers, the demanding fanbase, the unoriginal merchandise, the slow sales, digital distribution…the list was just about endless. One of the more perky members decided to speak up.
"Do they have any demands?"
"They say that we either disband Nanashi or pay up a hefty sum." The president informed.
"Disband them!" Various members of Animate said.
"What?!" The men of the band shouted.
"We've been keeping this business afloat thanks to our performances!" Kaito said.
"Attendance and sales have gone up to! We've been making this company stick out compared to the others!" Ryuta argued.
"YOU CAN'T GET RID OF US THAT EASILY!"
A feud quickly erupted between the three men versus the rest of the staff. Kagami took this opportunity to go over the paperwork. She would be fine either way if the band played or not. Her performances never really interfered with her real life compared to other teenage idols. Perhaps this was because she didn't try to hide it up with a super-cute personality or a disguise using a different kind of wig.
Then again, she probably just looked at this as a distraction from all the bickering. Hiiragi had a good amount of knowledge on the legal system, from some of her studies and watching those crime drama shows with her family. Once she came across the main problem, she felt rather embarrassed. This was something that even a non-educated person could figure out. The problem was clear-cut but it was obvious as a case could possibly be.
"Hey!" Kagami shouted. The people couldn't hear the tsundere over their own problems. She placed her fingers by her mouth creating an audible whistle. All of the eyes were now on her. "Did anyone bother to read this?" She said in a deadpan tone.
"Why would you say that?!" Takahashi shouted. "OF COURSE I READ IT!"
"Uh-huh." Kagami spoke. "Did you read the part where this problem could be easily fixed?"
Everyone looked in Kagami's direction with a confused look. Meito himself walked up to his band mate and took the papers from her hands. After close inspection, he felt great shame. To think that the owner of a large company could miss something so easy and so obvious was just silly. He continued to look at the papers, noting the true reason that the lawsuits were filed.
"Sir…"
"Yes?"
Anizawa put a volcanic mix of fury and passion into his left hand. He swiped the president right across the face causing him to fly into the wall. The other members of Animate were astonished that lower-ranking employee attacked one of the corporate leaders. And the president of all people! Meito's fiery anger reflected in his eyes as he pointed at the hole in the wall.
"YOU DIDN'T BOTHER TO CREDIT THE ORIGINAL CREATORS?!"
Instead of a forceful counterattack, Takahashi responded in a more innocent matter.
"Well, I wanted to get more people into the band. And a cover band isn't all that eye-catching..."
"What?!" Everyone shouted.
Being the rhythm-game expert, Kaito spoke up about the situation. "Wait a minute; people don't know that we are a cover band? And you didn't even bother to give credit to the original sources?!"
"Isn't that copyright infringement?" Ryuta said.
"Clearly." Kagami said. "From what I read, this started when we put our music video live. It started with the concerts that were hitting the internet at an alarming rate. However, distributing a video throughout all of Japan with our own logo on it has brought a lot of attention. Especially the fact that we did not credit the band we covered! We didn't give credit where credit is due, that's why we are getting sued!"
"WE WERE SPITTING IN THE FACES OF TRUE ARTISTS AROUND THE WORLD! WE WORK IN ANIME FOR HARUHI'S SAKE, WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE LEGAL SYSTEM!"
"How many people exactly know what we are doing?" Kaito questioned.
"Well…" The president's secretary said. "From our studies, 52% of the attendees enjoy what you do even if it's based off of a game or not. They truly believe that what you do helps the anime industry and it's a great way of helping Animate."
Nanashi smiled from that fact. People saw them as professional entertainers now. It gave them a great sense of confidence that they game playing skills had helped in the long run.
"The rest believe that you are just another gimmick to earn the company money. Since you don't really play your own music or play your own songs."
All of those great thoughts the band was feeling? They were now out the window as they lowered their heads in disappointment.
"People have been responding well to the music video. Many of our critics say that it was well designed and the visuals were amazing. The energy was there like attending a concert. This could be a big step for us!"
"I got it…" The Animate President arose from his pain. "If they want to music videos…then I have the perfect idea. EVERYONE, GET TO THE UNDERGROUND STUDIO NOW!"
Like a flock of seagulls, the employees flooded out of the room to get to the green screen room. Masses of people were getting cramped on the elevators or falling down the stairs. They were just doing whatever they could to please their boss. Animate could of used their elite set of helicopters…but due to the fear of lawsuits, they couldn't. Collateral damage was also really expensive.
The three teenagers from Ryoo High School just looked at the top floor of the company in a stupor. Praise was nice, but they fell into a very dark state. Playing video games had officially turned into very serious business.
A few days later…
A party was being held at Patricia's apartment in celebration of the newest music video from Nanashi. The room was small…perhaps a little too small for twelve people, but that made it all the more personal and inviting. Everyone had their backs to the walls as their eyes just focused on the television screen. Konata looked at her cell phone to check the time. She groaned rather audibly as the anime they were watching felt insanely long.
"When is the music video going to start!?" She shouted.
"Please don't shout that loud when I'm right next to you." Kagami strained.
"These things take time." Hiyori said from across the room. "You know that they make viewers watch the entire show before the promo actually airs! That's one of the oldest broadcasting tricks in the book!"
"It's pretty common to that around highly anticipated airings like this." Minami said. "They stretch out the time and advertise other programs on that particular network."
"Wow, I didn't know you knew so much about business, Minami-chan!" Yutaka chimed in, looking at her with doe eyes.
Hiyori cocked her head at her at that second. "That's what I just said!" Hiyori screamed in her mind. "Why is Minami getting so much attention!? Well…at least I can see Yutaka with doe eyes without feeling guilty. Oh wait, I can't draw this down, the video will air in a few minutes!"
Kaito leaned over to see Hiyori in agony. He nudged Patricia on the shoulder. "I think someone's having a creative issue." He whispered.
She giggled. "You wouldn't believe how many times I've seen that face."
The two of them had a good laugh from that. Their fujoshi had a wonderful brain but would often suffer from too many synapses. While Ryuta could hear his best friend laughing, he remained astute on the television. Usually, people would ignore him at concerts because he was in the back and didn't even sing the harmonies. Drummers were always getting the short end of the stick…unless there was a keyboardist in the band. However, with this music video, he would finally get some time in the limelight.
Miyuki took notice to this. "You seem rather focused, Kurohiko-san."
"Oh, what?" Ryuta said, startled. "Yeah, I'm really excited about the video."
"Tell me something…" The meganekko started. "With this music video, are you going for the same cinematography like your last video or is it going to be completely different?"
"Actually today we are going for something completely different. We're using green screen technology with a large number of lights and CGI. It's a scene at night, but because of the constant due to the constant change in scenery, we had to do a lot more analyzing and keying out than for normal video."
Miyuki nodded to the technical jargon, while Tsukasa just blanked out. With the babble on her right and her sister arguing on the left, she was just stuck in an uncomfortable position. The only thing she could really do was look at television. Her eyes lit open as words started to appear across the screen.
"Everyone!" She shouted. "It's on!"
A hush immediately filled the room as everyone's eyes focused on the screen. Everything was tuned out just so that they could watch all of Nanashi's talent work in constant motion.
The scenery looked very stylish from the very first frame. It was a shot of the moon as its lunar light shined down across the terrain at full force. The camera slowly descended, moving from the moon to a street lined with wooden cottages. In a wink, a cloud of dust immediately puffed up in a straight line, moving in a single direction. The dust curved to the right reaching one particularly large house.
As the dust cleared, a lone rickshaw was positioned in front of the wealthy building. Three law enforcement officers, equipped with jutte, walked from their vehicle to the front door. The taller man signaled his partner to stay and guard the front door, while the girl they brought along was left to keep an eye out for suspicious activity. He knocked once, hoping for a response. Nothing. Without warning, he burst the door open, kicking off the song and starting the chase.
Bow!
He screamed, trying to move through the complex corridors. This time the video was more about the atmosphere. The guitar and base kept a similar riff, hitting a pair of eight notes, then four descending, and then four ascending notes. The drums moved in a completely erratic pattern, focusing on mostly the hi-hat while hitting the snare and bass pedal at random parts. Meito continued to struggled as he moved through several parts of house.
Da!
Da-ish-ah Bow!
He walked into a new room where his jaw dropped immediately to the floor. It was a total mess…it looked like a rather nasty struggle with stains on the bed. A clay-red color was sprayed on various areas of the room hitting all the furniture.
Da uh…
Uh…ah…oh no!
Meito tried to keep to himself as he analyzed the situation.
As he came into the window, was a sound of a crescendo.
He came into her apartment, left the bloodstains on the carpet.
She was sitting at the table; you could see she was unable.
Studying the marks, he found a large stain around one of the sliding doors. Once he opened it, his eyes went huge looking at the body found on the ground.
So she ran into the bedroom, she was struck down, it was her doom.
Meito's duty as a police officer went into overdrive as he looked over the body. She looked really badly beaten, but he wasn't able to confirm total death. He quickly went to work trying every motion to get her back to life. Musically, the tempo stayed the same, but the instruments changed slightly. The guitar changed to sustained chords while the bass moved in sets of four notes. He started to shout, hoping to get through to her, calling out the name labeled on the house.
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
YOU OKAY, PATTY?!
At this point, Kaito entered the room not bearing to wait any longer. He was sure no one else was going to try and break in due to the subtlety of the crime. Seeing the body, he went into a total panic, diving down to attempt to revive the girl. It was all happening so fast for him, he had trouble trying to analyze the situation.
Patty, are you okay, would you tell us that you're okay?
And the sound of a window, that he struck you, a crescendo Patty!
Came into your apartment, left the bloodstains on the carpet.
Then you ran into the bedroom, you were struck down. It was your doom.
During that last chorus, the beat changed again as the guitar hit a series of chords from all across the fret board. What were peculiar were the drums, which moved to a ride-based pattern that moved from place to place. That same tone of concern and panic was just enhancing the song.
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Meito pumped his fists together coming to one true deduction:
You've been hit by;
you've been struck by,
A SMOOTH CRIMINAL!
Anizawa tried to keep his cool as his partner was trying as desperately as he could to resuscitate the victim. Things had calmed down as the second verse indicated the change back to the normal, instrumental patterns. He tried to look over the situation logically, as sitting here would not catch the culprit responsible for this heinous crime.
So he came into the out-way, it was Sunday, but a black day.
I could make salutation, selling heartbeat...intimidation.
As much as he tried to deduce the situation, he couldn't think over the hysterical partner.
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
YOU OKAY, PATTY?!
Meito took this time to call for backup. The girl got up from the rickshaw and decided to scour around the houses, to look for a crawl space or a dimly-lit area. He explained the situation to her in full detail, trying to ignore the crying in the room.
Patty, are you okay; would you tell us that you're okay?!
And the sound of a window, then he struck you, a crescendo, Patty!
Came into your apartment, left the bloodstains on the carpet.
Then you ran into the bedroom, you were struck down, it was your doom.
Kaito tried one last time to wake the girl up in a desperate attempt, pushing hard against her sternum.
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
Are you okay, Patty?
At that moment, the visiting English woman coughed in a frenzy as she awoke from her unconscious state. She could hardly move or talk though, the blunt damage a bit too severe for her to move. Kaito was glad however, picking her up and taking her to the vehicle in order to find the hospital. He informed her about the one thing he knew for sure:
You've been hit by,
you've been struck by,
A smooth criminal!
Kagami and Meito, knowing that the victim was safe, went through a quick sweep through the village to find the perpetrator. The two of them pulled out their miniature lanterns and started to check for more concealed areas. Anizawa's ears picked up the sounds of footsteps, causing him to turn around. Before him was a bespectacled ninja whose body was completely immersed in the moonlight, revealing a weapon in his hand. The singer shouted to get the other officers attention.
Bow!
The chase was on as the ninja scrambled away from the moonlight into an alley. Meito followed him, but was having trouble catching up with him due to his amazing agility. He corned the culprit into a corner, grinning over the beating he was gonna give him. The ninja wasn't going to captured that easily however as he jumped from wall to wall to get to the roof. He eluded Meito, but was not expecting the tsundere waiting for him.
Musically, the song was becoming more aggressive. The bass kept the same pace, but the guitar and drums were going completely nuts. After one chord, the guitar moved in a frantic solo, moving across the fretboard in a shower of hammer-ons and pull-offs. It's ferocity was only enhanced by the constant strumming. The drums were going all over the place with multiple fills. One was a constant series of snare rolls, while others moved across the entire drum kit altogether.
Things became more crucial as the ninja knew he would have to fight one of the officers. Kagami engaged him by battle by attempting to strike him with her jutte. He retaliated by dodging her blows and trying to push her away. And while he himself tried to fight back with body blows, the girl's juttejutsu was up for the challenge. The two of them were fighting rather noisy as they exchanged attacks.
Bow! Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Meito had to interfere, it would be the best way to get the ninja. Dropping his lantern, he used his sheer leg power to jump from wall to wall and up upon the roof. The ninja panicked, but had an ace up his sleeve. He pushed Kagami away, quickly started to move his hands into some kind of chant. In a blink of the eye, a clone of himself had appeared, willing to fight the strong man. The two of them were shocked, but they fought against the ninjas with intense vigor.
Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Da doo da doo da da hoo!
Da doo da doo da da…
As much as Kaito wanted to help, he had to take the girl the hospital. Every second was vital. He continued to talk to at least stimulate her senses.
Patty, are you okay; would you tell us that you're okay?!
And the sound of a window, then he struck you, a crescendo, Patty!
Came into your apartment, left the bloodstains on the carpet.
Then you ran into the bedroom, you were struck down, it was your doom.
The song was reaching its climax as the guitar broke into loud, speedy riffs after its solo. The fight on the rooftops was doing the same as the green-haired ninja started to use smarter tactics to defeat his enemies. The two of them doubled up on Kagami, using to sweep her legs and knock her off the edge.
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Meito retaliated in anger, trying to bash the ninja's head in with full force. But that was the route the ninja wanted him to take. The two ninjas joined forces as they shoulder tackled him back into the alley.
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Patty, are you okay, you okay?
You okay, Patty?
Song-wise, the tempo returned to its original beat while the enforcers struggled back to their feet. Kagami was lucky enough to hang onto the edge, as she climbed slowly up the building.
Bow!
Meito, still with strength in his body, jumped back up the roof to find one lone ninja by himself. His clone form must have faded away.
Bow!
As the two enforcers reached the roof once again, the quickly became overwhelmed by what the ninja had planned. In his hand was a bomb, which he threw to the ground without flinched. A puff of smoke erupted from the blast. As it cleared, Meito and Kagami were furious to learn that the ninja had completely vanished.
Bow!
And after that last shout and a tom roll, the song had completely ended with a sign of the defeated warriors.
At Patty's Apartment...
Several faces were in awe of what they saw, with the exception of the band members themselves. Going through take after take and seeing the final product had prepared them for the awesome. Konata was quick to speak.
"That video was amazing! Oh man, I can't believe you were able to pull it off so quickly!" She shouted.
"Oh, it's nothing really…" Kagami shrugged.
"Are you kidding!? This one was so much better than the last one! Oh, the things that Kagami-sama can create!" Konata said, taking a diving hug at the bassist's stomach.
"He-hey!" Kagami was one to appreciate praise, but didn't like it when people grabbed her midsection.
Hiyori was in a different state of surprise.
"How did you get Patty-chan to appear in that video!? Oh, I can't believe it! I actually know someone in a music video!" The fujoshi rather blinked over that embarrassing remark, knowing the band members already.
"I pulled some strings." Kaito said. "I thought it would be a fun take to use someone I knew instead of who they were planning to use. I might of sacrificed some of my pay, but it was worth it."
"Kaito-kun is so sweet." Patty said, nuzzling into his shoulder.
"So that's why you set it had the party here…" Minami acknowledged.
Everyone had felt really positive over this new music video from Nanashi. Telling the song in story formed had changed the mood for the better, than the typical fare of standing and playing. Animate was all about flash, and it really showed here. Everyone appreciated the new change in direction from the action to the way the music and lyrics matched the visuals. Tsukasa and Miyuki were very impressed by what had happened. It seemed that this new change was going to something that both the critics and fans will love.
With the lone exception of Kobayakawa Yutaka who was hiding in the corner. A bloody, battered body was a bit too much for her to handle.
Hope you all enjoyed that and my holiday-based chapters, for they shall return. Thanks for reading; please review! Do inform me of any spelling errors because I really wanted to show people that I was still writing.
Hey, Disclaimer!: Rock Band 2 is property of Harmonix Studios. Smooth Criminal was written by Michael Jackson. Produced by Himself and Quincy Jones; Labeled by Epic Records. The cover was performed by Alien Ant Farm and Produced by Jay Baumgardner; Labeled by SKG Records.
PS: I think the girl in that song died, but I'm not gonna kill a Lucky Star character for theatrics. Especially not Patty-chan.