It was ten minutes till seven in the morning.

The sun had already risen for some time and was touching everything in the park, lending crisp outlines to the greenery. But there were few people as of yet, and elsewhere in the park there was only the sound of woodland birds and a few crickets. With the cool, dew-kissed air, one could believe she was lost in some mountain trail if she closed her eyes.

If she sat long enough, she would begin to hear something trickling into the ambient chorus of the woods.

A brook? But there was no flowing stream in this part of Tokyo. Was the wind shaking the branches somewhere?

"…"

A little longer, and the sound will take on its true form. Softly, and then slowly spreading out until, before one could realize, it was everywhere. Someone was at the piano.

What…?

What graceful playing! Where…?

The music was hard to follow to its source, having mixed in seamlessly into the environment, but the window whence it came was not that far off, partly secluded by the shade of katsura and some other trees. Ren had been up before dark and was playing the piano continuously, not even stopping for a glass of water.

At that moment two park-goers had decided to take the quick route and cross the park to a nearby hospital. "Maki-chan," said the younger lady, "everybody's looking up to you already. Can I call you 'doctor' now?"

"Silly you. It's only been a month." Since she got her physician's license.

"But you're the heir, aren't you? You'll still be running the place."

Sigh. "I guess so."

Giggle. "It's not like it's just that. You're so graceful you stand out. If I didn't know you I'd think you'd been running the place for years."

The older one only smiled. "Is that so? People do judge others based on their looks."

"Is something wrong with that?"

"There will always be a few people who'll question me because I'm new. I don't need my head getting turned right now before I have proven myself."

"Heh? And for how long?"

Shrug. "Dunno. A year? Two years?"

She touched her friend's shoulder. "Don't wait, Maki-chan. Just show 'em what you've got every single day. Besides, it's the patients you need to impress, not some random strangers. I heard quite a few of them have been trusting your hospital for years."

"Shhhh…."

"Huh?"

They both stopped.

"What is it, Maki-chan?"

But the lady was already hearing the piano. Soon enough, the younger woman also caught it, faintly at first, but as soon as she recognized the music, her breath was taken away.

"Wow, I wish I could play like that—"

"Shhhh…" After her friend had quieted down, she slowly sank back into an entranced stupor, her eyes half-closing as though falling asleep, but fervid longing shone through. She was clearly awake—in some faraway realm only she can visit, deep in her heart.

"M-Maki-chan…?"

The two risked being trapped there where they stood. The whole park was underwater, within the overpowering melody of that piano, the woods, the gardens, the birds frolicking in the sunshine streaming through the trees, everything was submerged.

After the music had ceased, the two were still standing there, drenched in the soft whispers of morning breeze. A few bird calls blended into the wind. A moment later they suddenly came to again.

"E-Eh? What time is it?"

Inside the window Ren slumped face-down over the piano as though completely drained, but her eyes were wide open and pondering a passionate thought, whilst she let the wind flow into the room to raise the curtains and play with her hair.

OP Song

Bouken Type A, B, C!

Lyrics: Aki Hata

Composition and Arrangement: Tatsuya Kurauchi

.

#7. Our Feelings

The refreshing morning sunshine morphed into a torpid mugginess as the day wore on. Kanon's class had to turn on the AC early in the third period. They will only have one more class to avail of the cool before being turned out into the harsh sun for those who are lunching at the cafeteria.

By four in the afternoon there was still plenty of heat left over and the School Idol Club were lying all over the clubroom as soon as they stepped in and dropped their bags on the table. Worse, long tests on three subjects were coming up even on the heels of the formidable midterms.

"Meiji, Taisho, Showa… Heisei…" groaned Kuu-chan weakly, using her textbook as a pillow. "Reiwa…"

Sumire was already snoring away, her own textbook spread out over her face as if it was a beauty mask. She was already planning for a publicity stunt and, combined with the test, the thinkload must have been a little too much. Kanon was languidly rocking back and forth in her seat over her worksheets, her eyes fluttering. She is likely dreaming on the spot as we speak.

"Calcium carbonate is obtained from… seashells… chalk… burp."

"Meiji… Showa… Taisho… Heishi… Raiwa… Meiji… Taiwa… Shosho… Heirei… Seiwa…"

"I nurture my… skin…"

Eventually she too collapsed onto her papers.

About an hour later Chisato came in. She wasn't staying for long; she'll have to catch up to her work shift. She only wanted to steal some quick notes for review that three heads may have already dug up from the books. So, great was her disappointment when on arrival she found all three knocked out.

"Kanon," she whispered in her ear. "Kanon?" Huff. "What's matter with you guys? I can't even have fun with you!"

It had been such a bummer, major tests on top of each other just when they were finally banding together. A group was useless without fun activities, and Chisato wanted her fun.

"Heeheehee…" she said taking a camcorder out of her bag. "I can't believe this will be our first group video ever."

She first trained her lens on Kuku, who was already drooling. "This one's for the stink bubbles."

An evil grin was already forming at the corner of her lips. She took about three minutes of video with each of them at really unflattering angles. With Sumire, however, she had to pause recording. "Come on, girl," she said reaching out for the book, "you're a beauty, let's get that thing off of you."

But just as she was about the touch it, Eep! a hand gripped her wrist. The hold was also surprisingly strong. Sumire laid a trap! No rather, actually, she seems to be half-dreaming, maybe sleepwalking, no, sleepholding. She was mumbling something under that book. Chisato could only wail and make a ruckus as she tried to break away. "Ididn'tfilmanythingyetIwasjustabouttopleaseletmego!"

Whereupon she found the other two standing right behind her. "Eheheheh…" She looked at her cam. "I-Iwasgoingtoaskyouguysaboutmakingashortfilm—"

"Chi-chan," said Kanon with an unnerving calm, why is the light blinking?"

Oh?

"Ah… Eheheh…. Ahahahaha!"

The club later sentenced her to digging for stuff to borrow from the Cosplay Club as they were going to a convention tomorrow, Sunday evening, for Sumire's promotional vlog with the School Idol Club. Finally, a cosplay weekend they could actually use…

That evening Sumire skipped dinner and buried herself in Uncle's laptop again, looking over the convention and absently picking on some Pocky. Hmmmm, their outfits will need to stand out just enough. Nothing too gaudy if they were to be taken seriously as school idols. She wished Chisato would cough up enough material so she could make a more informed choice.

Again, she dipped her hand into the Pocky box, but it was now empty. Great. She can't be bothered to get up and travel to the fridge to get more snacks. The hunger pangs from the untouched dinner will be felt within half an hour; she'll have to work fast enough before she was absolutely forced to the table.

"You're really planning to get fat, are you?" said a voice from the door.

Oh. It's Eri, her cousin. Uncle Kiyoshi's kid. She didn't bother to turn her head. "Did Uncle send you to take the lappy?"

Hearty laugh. "Oh, I wouldn't dare. Wouldn't want to be a hindrance to the queen of the galaxy, now."

She winced. Eri definitely got it from Uncle Kiyoshi. She remembered the them Uncle called her that in front of some guests in an effort to market her. Ew. Somebody in his forties just tried to latch onto her celebrity lingo. "Anything else you want from me, then, if it's not the lappy?"

"Nothing. I'm just being a concerned relative because you weren't taking your meals on time like a proper lady."

She just kept typing away.

"I had to come up here now. That habit of yours won't do at the New Year's banquet."

"It's the same antique stuff over and over again."

Snicker. "Over and over, huh? How many times you been there even?"

"…"

"You don't even know how to play a koto. Pity."

"And you? Your fashion is more outrageous than mine, stop pretending to be a scion just because you're related to them when you're just another Shibuya kid."

"Ohoho, at least I know how to do a proper tea ritual. And I know how to paint on a silk scroll, believe me or not."

"Humph."

Eri drew closer. "They're going to call you a foundling again."

Sumire only tried to dismiss it by turning away and returning to her work.

"Mayumi had been talking to Dad again. She said she really thinks somebody left you on the shrine steps. Well, I don't believe it, you know her, but if I were you I'd better do something before someone else does."

"Who's coming?"

"It's a whole clan affair, of course."

Sumire made a small face. This will be a little more iffy to reason away.

"Well, all of the branches in the Kanto region."

Huff. "You should have clarified sooner."

"You're part of this, Sumire. And even if we weren't from Tokyo, your straight absences should be quite noticeable by now."

"…"

"If only you showed up even just a couple of times for the whole of this year, they can overlook you."

"I'm just a high school grunt, why should they be terrified whether I appear in front of them or not?"

Eri only snickered again at this. "Make up your mind, Sumire. Are you a star? Or are you a grunt?" And she left. As soon as his footsteps have faded, she let out a small whimper of annoyance. Silly brat, she thought, barging in in the middle of some very serious business.

"We will look over the costumes first before trying them out," Sumire had said over the phone last night. "I can assess your measurements at first glance. If something looks off with a costume, we'll instantly drop it. We won't have all day."

Sunday. The light from the window fell squarely on Kanon's face. She rolled away from the window and lay face down covering herself with the pillow.

"Urrrgh…" muttered Kanon letting her eyes open. Guhhhh… What time is it?

"…"

It's a Sunday, isn't it? Let me sleep on…

"…"

"…"

For some reason, however, she can't go back to sleep. But that doesn't mean she's in a mood to get out of bed. Not that it mattered. Mama will probably barge in and pick her up in thirty minutes or so. The place will be busier than an office on Monday the whole day, and not just with cafe customers. A portion of the second floor was being rented out for a function. There was a lot to attend to first. But the group will only have so much time to get ready for the convention. Whatever should I do?

As the slow hours after lunch was her only reprieve Kanon arrived at school at around half-past one. Her mind was still adrift from the short rest she took at the park on the way.

She let her own body go through the motions of changing shoes and checking the locker. She absently made her way down the hallway, greeting the few other students who had bothered to be on campus for today. Moh, the Cosplay's clubroom is still at the other wing of this building. Maybe I should pause for a while again at the vendo. She thought to return home by four; perhaps she could still dress for the convention.

She picked up the phone and called Kuku. "Hallo, Kanon-chan," greeted the voice at the other end. "Have you lunched yet?"

"No, I'm not hungry. I'm still thinking about the event."

Laugh. "I'm pumped up! Sumire-chan has already done a mini-itinerary for us. We'll be at the campus shortly."

"Uh-huh," she said weakly. "Let's do our best."

"Kanon-chan, are you alright?"

"It's nothing, I'm just a bit lightheaded. Maybe I should have a little snack, after all."

"I'll bring a bento for all of us, so don't worry." Giggle. "Also, I already have a costume with me 'coz I borrowed from my Shanghai buddies. Please look forward to it!"

At this, Kanon couldn't help but smile. Such enthusiasm. "Uhm. I want to see it."

Later, after a cookie pack and apple tea from the hallway vendo, she felt a little more normalized and after a good stretch she decided to go on to

"Wha-wha-wawawawa!"

D-D-Darth…

Darth…

Gah! What movie was that?! Geh, it's Chihiro-nee who's got a thing for American flicks.

"Kanon…"

Hiiiiiiiiii—! It's gonna kill me! It's after me from the start! It's programmed to vaporize me!

Hahhhh… Hahhhh…

"Uhhhh, ehhhh, a-are you alright, mister…?"

"What do you mean, 'mister?' Can't you tell who I am?!" It's in a scary cyborg speech. "Don't you see my odangos?"

Taking another look, yes, those are odangos alright, sticking out from the sides of the helmet. It's Chi-chan! But how did she get in there? Aloud, "Why did you pick this costume?!"

"Can you blame me? the boots were cool. So was the robe. So I thought the helmet would be fine, too!"

"It isn't!" This is going nowhere. "Did you really have to walk around in that?"

"That's the problem!" wailed Chisato in that same cyborg voice. "I can't find the zippers anymore!"

"A-And you expect me to know where they are?!" Unnerved by the combined effect of suit and sound, not to mention the labored breathing noises, Kanon stepped back little by little as Chi-chan tried to reach out to her. "A-Are you really Chi-chan?!"

"Of course you nitwit!" thundered Chisato. "Quit yakking around and get me out!" she ordered with shaking fist.

The angry demand, spoken through the uncanny filter of the helmet, and still in that same villain costume, finally did it for the frightened Kanon, who turned tail and fled down the hallway.

She had been running nonstop and she could still hear the loud thud of those bootsteps. My, she's fast!

I'm gonna be toast!

Ummmph—!

She just bumped into somebody. Whoa! It's Kuku… in a silvery-white sort of… space overalls? Dojo garb?

Kuku took one look at the enemy, and then produced a flashlight… from which emerged some sort of… glowstick? It's so bright! She then saw Chisato wield her own glowstick. What's going on? "Kuu-chan, stop this!"

"I'll save you, my princess. Do not fear…"

"Kuu-chan!"

"I'm not Kuku. I am… Kuke… Kuke Flywalker. Desu."

Kuke pushed her aside and engaged the villain. For a furious minute or two, the swordfight went on so fast it felt like ten minutes… until Chisato's saber hit and bloodlessly cut off her hand.

"Aggggh!"

"Kuu-chan!"

Kuku popped her real hand out of her sleeve. "It's just a glove." They resumed the fight as Kanon looked on in fright. Just then, Kuku's prop happened to hit a sort of switch that loosened the helmet as well as its grip on the robe, exposing the handle of the zipper Chisato had been looking for so desperately.

Kanon brightened up. "Finally!"

They rushed over and took off Chisato's helmet. "Huah—!" she huffed. "I feel like I was trapped in a coffin."

"Next time," said Kanon, "do tell us what time you're going to pick a costume, alright?"

Long sigh. "I don't have a lot of experience in this." She regarded Kuku with a little envy. "Kuu-chan is much better at it. You should be our costume department."

"Huh?" said Kuku in surprise. "No, I just happen to like cosplaying a lot. Eheheh~ Sumire-chan is much more fashionable."

Speaking of which— "Ahem, ahem!"

They turned to see the girl herself arrive slinging four costumes on her shoulder. For some reason they all felt not a little ashamed being found like this. "What are you guys up to?" she said in exasperation.

They looked at each other worriedly for a moment, and then Chisato spoke up. "I was the one to dig for the outfits, right?"

Sumire puffed in frustration. "And playing around on the side, I see."

"We were just about to go to the Cosplay Club," said Kanon. "Chi-chan was stuck, we had to help her out."

"There's no need for the Cosplay Club now. See this? I was going to have us try it on." She saw Kuu-chan. "But it looks like having fun is everyone's priority."

"W-We're not playing!" insisted Chisato. "You think getting stuck in that stuffy costume was fun?"

"If you were serious, you wouldn't even have been in that suit to begin with! Seriously… That's not the kind of suit we need for the convention!"

"It wasn't just for the convention, I was rummaging around for gimmicks for our future live shows"

"Tch. That's the problem with you people. You rely on gimmickry where pure talent is called for."

"Um, excuse me," said Kanon, "A idol group should be all-around and anything-goes so we can entertain everybody. People have many tastes, who knows what could pique their interest?"

Sumire threw her a piercing stare.

"I see we have radically different philosophies on what it means to be a star." Hair flip. "But when it comes to an actual stage performance, shouldn't you entrust everything to somebody who has the background?"

They were stunned for a moment. Kanon was about to launch a retort but Kuku touched her shoulder and shook her head. After letting herself cool down, "Sumire-chan, are we going into another argument so quickly?" Puff. "Alright, we're sorry. Let's forget all of this. Give us the outfits."

Sumire only made a face. "Apologizing won't do, Takami." She gave a sweeping gaze. "It not about apologies. It's about performance. Dedication. You people. You have all been playing. Ever since."

"…"

"You think having our first concert is enough for you to let yourself goof around?"

"…"

She turned away. "I'm sorry. I don't think we can go to the event tonight." And she left. Before she could get any farther, however, Kanon called after her.

"Are we going to expect you at the club tomorrow?"

She turned an angry face at them. "You're turning me out already? I'm not done with you, alright? You be sure to be there. I'll excuse myself from cleaning duty. I'll be waiting."

A pang of regret suddenly took hold of Kanon. She knew she had slipped up. The look on her face drew more attention from the other two than Sumire, and before they realized it, she was gone. You're turning me out already? "No…" she mumbled, "it's not like that… Sumire-chan…"

スーパースターズ! GO!

That Monday, Kanon also had herself excused from cleaning duty to get to the clubroom early. She met up with Chisato at the hallway. Kuu-chan will be following shortly.

"Brrrr…" Chisato was already rubbing her hands by the time they got out to the courtyard. It will be probably snowing in two weeks. The sky was steel-grey more often now. But nobody was wearing any sweaters yet. The school was still having their winter uniforms made so they will probably be late, and the students will be having their own winter wear probably late next week.

"At this rate," Chi-chan remarked, "it will be huge auditorium event, or no event."

Kanon was still worrying about other matters. Something had to be done with the club itself first, of course. "You shouldn't bother too much about Sumire-chan. She's in a mood, it will go away as soon as we lay these sweets on the table."

Kanon smiled at her in relief. "You're not so worked up over her now."

She shrugged. "It's my fault after all for messing with the costume. I also felt the same before the concert, you know.

"I guess we're getting used to each other a little now after spending enough time together."

Kanon melted and hugged her. "Everything will be alright."

They met Kuku at the entrance to the building where the club was. "Guys," she said apprehensively, "let's go together."

"Relax, Kuu-chan," said Kanon, "we got refreshments." Bright smile. "We'll ask her to take us to that chic bakeshop again after the meeting."

Kuku didn't reply and just fell in behind them as they trooped to the clubroom.

True enough, Sumire was at the head of the table waiting for them, having skipped the entire last period. She had a large notebook and it seemed she was scribbling something in it while passing the time. Before anyone else could so much as open their mouths, she threw the open notebook onto the table in front of them all.

"W-What is that?" mumbled Kanon.

"Our club schedule until the end of this school year."

Chisato, silently shocked, snatched the thing and, as she now feared, it was an incredibly regimented plan, detailed down to the dates, who was to do which specific task, and even backup plans if some of the events fell through, not that there was a lot of such backup.

"We can't do all of this!" she reacted.

Sumire smirked, much to their dismay. Was… Was Sumire expecting this response? But then, she explained it herself. "I knew it. You people aren't serious at all."

Their mouths hung in the air.

"What I made was just typical for a proper popstar. Unlike you, I do not take my perspective from the audience, who only see the stage and the performers having a good time with them. We are not an audience, we're the stars!"

"Aren't you shoving your own on us like we're not even here? We're not pros, please consider your teammates."

"We are pros. If not now, then that's where we're going. Stop kidding yourselves. You're on a stage. We have an audience. Even if you know some of them, they're still an audience. In a concert we stand on a different place from theirs."

Audience, huh? "Sumire-chan," said Kanon, "we may not have been able to do as much as a group, if it's the audience you're talking about… Haven't you seen their faces that day?

"They were ecstatic. They cheered for us so loudly. They had the time of their lives, and we made them smile. Even if we dropped the group song."

Hearing Kanon mention an idea she came up with in a somewhat bad light, Sumire felt attacked once more, and her face hardened just a wee bit. "I'm only thinking of what will be best for us."

"And how were you able to come up with what will be best for us?" said Chisato.

"I've been there, girl. All of it. Don't you tell me what to do with our team."

"Guys," intervened Kuku trying to put forward her best smile, "let's not get carried away, alright?"

"Like any amateur ever," continued Sumire, ignoring Kuku. "You believe in your audience too much.

"Did you know?

"How many people remember μ's in Harajuku, or even in Akiba after they disbanded? Everybody? Even if so, even if they were like you, didn't you say you know only Kosaka-san and a few other members? Kosaka, who you parrot so shamelessly?

"Here and now I can confidently state that I can easily find people on any Tokyo street who know entirely nothing of them, even if they're from Otonokizaka. Heh. I reckon at least half of Otonokizaka has forgotten them.

"And you know why?

"They foolishly neglected to leave records of themselves. You say μ's is a legend? What about you? And you say it's all about the audience? You will entrust absolutely everything to your audience? You want to put on a show and then let everyone forget us? What's the use of performing, then?"

At that point, Sumire held back. Perhaps she has said too much? But those were her honest feelings. Geh, why was she so honest with these girls she hasn't even been with for a year? Why did she care enough to go this far? She closed her eyes to hide any worries she might be feeling right now. But what she had said should be enough. She composed herself. They should make a decision now. Sure enough, when she opened her eyes, she found that Kanon had also closed hers, and Chisato was looking intently at her, awaiting her, and only Kuku looked lost.

"Sumire-chan," said Kanon finally, opening her eyes, "it's not about being remembered, why we perform. It's so our audience, with our help, will always remember to smile, long after we're gone."

"…"

"μ's would say something like that. Don't you think?

"If you can't go with that, we can't possibly work together.

"Sumire-chan," she said, quietly holding back her tears, "please reconsider your stance."

Sumire felt her own deep breath. Truth be told, she had been torn in half whilst writing down in that notebook, but now… This 'school idol' thing. Was it really so different from what she grew up with? Did she just out herself as an amateur, too, an amateur to school idols?

How shameful of me.

I guess this is the right time to let that other half of me take over.

"That's right," said Sumire finally. "We were never built to work with each other." Kanon didn't answer back. Chisato was still looking at her friend. They must have accepted her declaration. She turned aside and found Kuku staring at them all, still in confusion and utter helplessness, more like a gaze unable to be turned away from a burning house. "You," Sumire said, "who are you going with?"

She posed that question, but her eyes were commanding and magnetic, telling Kuku to side with her. Those eyes were just perfect to use on somebody as paralyzed as Kuku was at the moment. And it showed. The girl's gaze mellowed and sank slowly to her feet. But…

Kuku looked up again, this time to the two buddies. As though asking leave of them. Kanon smiled warmly at her like always, silently telling her it's alright. Some of the confusion returned. She did hope they would put up a little fight to get her back, but, oh well…

At around five, the dull sky and the shortened day prompted the lights on all over the empty campus and on the street outside. A burst of wind would blow from time to time. And there were snow flurries.

Next Time! #8. The Birth of an Idol Group