u's Music Start!

Disclaimer: Don't own Love Live.

"Are you sure about this, Honoka?" Eri asked worriedly as she readied the camera. The entire project had been put on hiatus following the disasterous reception to the last episode. Apparently, having the episode continue as normal was aggravating to the fans who demanded compensation for Honoka's on-screen collapse. Honoka nodded, determined to go through with it even though she would be on camera alone.

"The whole thing is my fault. I have to set it right so that no one gets hurt. And so that Maki-chan can come back." The red-haired first year hadn't been seen at school without an escort, and none of the rest of Muse could approach her without being threatened. She had been put into the literal spot between a rock and a hard place, as she was both a member of Muse, who the fans wanted to continue seeing, and a Nishikino, who the fans blamed for the project.

"We're ready here." Hanayo announced. They were going to live stream Honoka's speech on the internet, hoping that enough fans were watching to spread the message, and they were doing it on their own. The film crew, like the rest of the production company, were on lock-down. The higher-ups of the company were arguing in court against the charges the fans had brought. A decision hadn't been made yet, but Muse needed to stop the false charges laid by their viewers and finish the project.

"Okay, Honoka. Ready when you are." Eri said, her finger hovering over the record button. Honoka took a deep breath, then released it. She needed to be honest with the fans, and explain why she had collapsed and how it wasn't the fault of the company. She double-checked one last time to make sure Hanayo was working the live stream chat along with Rin and Kotori.

"They're already online. The news is spreading that we're doing a live stream and they're commenting in the chat even though nothing has happened yet." Hanayo looked at Honoka, her gaze just as determined as Honoka felt. "I'll relay any questions to you."

"Thanks, Hanayo-chan. Okay, Eri-chan. Let's do this." The red dot flashed on their camera, letting her know that she was now live on the screens of strangers. She needed to calm them down and convince them to stop targeting the production company.

"My name is Kousaka Honoka, the leader of Muse, though I'm sure many of you already know that…" Honoka trailed off, nervousness suddenly rising in her chest as she suddenly became aware that she would have to be herself and not the 'Honoka' she had been portraying on-screen. Even if she had felt closer to her character's persona, she couldn't help but be afraid of talking about herself after being 'Honoka' all the time for the fans. She looked at Eri, who gave her a reassuring smile despite being just as worried as she was. It was a hard task they were attempting, to calm down the masses, and it could easily go wrong. "...and I know many of you are very angry at the production company after I collapsed during the shoot because it looks like they forced me to dance when I wasn't feeling well but that's not how it went at all."

"Keep going, Honoka-chan. They're complaining about the company, but the view numbers are increasing." Hanayo said, keeping her gaze on the screen of the laptop.

"I pushed myself onto the stage knowing that I had a fever, knowing that I would not be able to last the whole performance, because I wanted to be there. I wanted to dance on that stage with the rest of Muse. We'd worked so hard for it, I couldn't let them down at that moment!" Honoka shivered with the force of emotion that was within her. She hadn't felt this much passion for anything, except maybe when she was deeply ingrained in the plot of an anime and the main character died but her mind was now going off-track and she needed to stop herself and refocus on her task. She looked at the paper she had worked on with the other members of the group to say in calming down their viewers. "But that was my mistake. I was too reckless in trying so hard to perform that day. I know I could have, no, I should have asked them to postpone the day of the filming so that I would be in a better condition."

"Honoka-chan, they're starting to get rowdy in the chat! They keep repeating 'Save Muse' and 'Bring down the producers' and they're not responding well to the three of us trying to stop them." Hanayo reported, looking at Honoka. "What do we do now?" For the first time since they met, Hanayo looked truly frightened. Beside her, Kotori and Rin typed away, doing their best to ease the tension that was building online. Despite their actions, she could hear the almost nonstop chimes that alerted them to new messages showing up on their chat boards.

"Eh?" Honoka didn't know what to do. She was only a NEET after all, and no normal student had to deal with the situation she was trying to ease. "Ah...um…" The fear that came from being on camera, the fear that her actions were only exacerbating the problem, the fear that her friends were now feeling; it was all working against her. She was scared, far beyond what she had felt a few days ago, when she had gotten yelled at by Eri. Eri! Desperately, she looked at the third-year, too frightened to stay on camera by herself now. "Eri-chan...help me…" Eri was about to go to her side when Kotori stopped her. The second year whispered something into the blonde's ear and she nodded reluctantly.

"Keep it up, Honoka. You're doing great." Hearing that didn't help Honoka's mood, or her heightened fear of being on-camera. It wasn't the proper time for teasing, she wanted to shout, but she was scared that doing so would aggravate the fans even more. Maybe she'd give one more attempt at a calming statement. The computer team hadn't stopped trying yet, and Eri was probably encouraging her though Honoka was inclined to think otherwise.

"Everyone watching this...wants to protect Muse, right?" She directed the question at Hanayo, not at the camera. The first year nodded vigrously before returning to her work at the chat room. "Then...lashing out at the production company...and the Nishikino family...won't help anything." There was something else she could use to change their minds. "Muse is a group of nine. Protecting eight of its members and neglecting the ninth means you're not trying to protect it."

"Ah, Honoka-chan, you idiot! They were calming down because you looked scared but now your comment is provoking them again!" Rin complained as the amount of chimes increased again.

"That's their fault! Maki-chan's a member of Muse too, but complaining to the Nishikino family is only driving her further and further away!" Honoka retorted, ignoring Eri's sigh as she facepalmed next to the camera. "I'm at fault for recklessly putting my life in danger for the sake of a show, and you're-" She pointed directly at the camera. "-all at fault for getting angry at the company for something you don't fully understand! So if you want to get angry, direct it at me, the cause of it all!" Silence fell after her outburst, even the chimes that announced incoming chat messages. "That's all. Thank you and good-bye." Eri turned off the recording after her last comment, and Honoka heaved a sigh of relief.

"You idiot!" Eri flicked her forehead, causing Honoka to whimper slightly. "Those last few statements of yours were anything but calming!"

"I couldn't come up with anything else to say! You didn't help me!" Honoka protested. Sure, she hadn't been calm at the end of the recording, but there wasn't much she could have done given how frightened she had been just a few moments before she started feeling fed up with their fans.

"As reckless as that was, it worked." Hanayo said breathlessly as she sat back in her chair. "There's still a few who want to fight at court, but most of them are satisfied with Honoka-chan's performance. Some are even taking you up on your offer and yelling at you."

"We should be back on screen in a few days, once everything calms down." Rin said, stretching. Honoka smirked, pulling away from Eri's grip on her cheeks. Her face still stung from the pinches on both sides, but she was finally triumphant over Eri.

"Hold on. We still have to get Maki."

"Ah." So that was nagging at the back of her mind. Their job wouldn't be finished until they had gotten Maki back into Muse.

"Don't tell me you forgot." Honoka whistled the tune to "Susume → Tomorrow" as she faced away from the third year. "Ho-no-kaa?"

"Ouchie! I'm sowwy!" She couldn't really speak all that clearly with Eri stretching her cheeks again.

"Speak clearly!"

"Let go of me firwst!"

~A Few Days Later~

The nine girls stood in preparation for what would be their final improvisation to the series. None of the next couple minutes were planned by the company. It was completely their own contribution, to end the series on a good note following the conclusion of soothing their fan's anger. As for how they got Maki back on board with the project...Honoka had to admit that A-Rise's leader was persistent. Enough to convince the Nishikino family that their daughter needed to make her own decisions, the first of which was to return to Muse.

"Are you sure about this? We've never done this song before."

"Yeah, but you've watched it right?"

"Still...that doesn't mean we're going to get right on the first try."

"I believe we can do it. It's time for us to start dash!"

"...what?"

"You know. The song name. Start Dash. Nevermind, let's just do it."

Yes! The singer on Honoka's poster in her bedroom is Nanjo Yoshino, Eri's voice actress. And it's her favorite singer, if you get what I mean. :3

Ending seems a bit rushed. Sorry.

Next chapter is going to be the epi- *static* What's...bzzzt-ing on...? *more static*

"Hello! I look forward to meeting everyone next chapter!" Who's talking right now?!

"There's no way this can end yet! That's right! A Never-Ending Party! I can't wait to play with everyone!"

...well...the mysterious person has spoken (you all probably know who it is already though). Next chapter will be- "A Never-Ending Party!"