Author's Note

Not sure why but I find a little hard to do Mahiru. It is supposed to be more focused on her but... I think it ended up having Yurina in it a bit too much. Though it did progress more or less how I want it to go. Maybe I needed some element that is more Mahiru focused. With all said, I am content with what I have right now. I will only make changes if there is a better idea or great suggestion coming in.

Chapter 27: Beautiful Aikatsu, Mahiru's Dream!

Few days after Yurina's Floral Idol Challenge, Rora, Mahiru, Ako, Koharu, and Haruka are in the S4 Garden.

Rora "Oh right, Koharu, why did you give Yurina that dress?"

Mahiru also add "Right, wasn't that supposed to be a surprise gift for Yume?"

Koharu smiles wryly "I just thought that it would be great on Yurina at that time. Besides, I can always make a new one."

Ako "Well, that's true."

Haruka then adds "But Yurina is amazing! It's almost like Yume back when we were still in the first year."

Everyone except Haruka looks at each other and is able to tell what each other are all thinking.

Koharu "So Yurina have the same mysterious power?"

Mahiru "Probably. It'll explain the sudden improvement during her live."

While everyone but Haruka is thinking about the same thing, Rola is having a different thought in her head "Hold on, that power. If I remember correctly, Hime has it too. It's also possible that Elza got one too but was able to control it before we met. Does this Yurina is the next precure?"

Ako notice Rola is putting up a grim face and ask "Rola, you okay?"

Rola snaps back and looks at Ako "Ah, yeah. Sorry, I was just thinking about something. Like… what is Headmaster going to do this time? I hope he isn't planning to expel Yurina as he did with Yume."

Then someone enters the S4 Garden. As they look over, they see Yurina. Yurina walks forward.

Yurina "Uhmm, sorry to bother everyone but… I was told by the Headmaster to come and study how S4 train and do their job."

Ako complains "Huh? Is he just pushing this onto us?"

Mahiru "Well, at least he didn't make unreasonable tests this time."

Yurina then says "Well, I don't know if this is what you mean but he said I have a hurdle to go over. If I can't succeed, he will expel me."

Haruka "Ehh? That's so mean! Haruka will go talk to the Headmaster!"

Haruka immediately runs off while Yurina wanted to say more.

Ako sees her attempt to say someone asks "Is there more?"

Yurina nods "Yes, he said not to worry too much. It's something that top idol has to overcome. He mentioned that even Yume had to overcome this test. It's just…"

Rola urges her to go on "It's just?"

Yurina looks at Rola for a second and continues "The first test he gives me is to find out what is the most important thing as an idol while on stage?"

Ako then says "Ah, it's probably that."

Ako looks at the other girls and they nod.

Koharu thinks for a moment "Yurina, if you don't know the answer, you should learn from Mahiru."

Yurina asks "Mahiru?"

Mahiru questions it as well "Me? Why?"

Ako smiles "Well, while on stage, you are probably the one who shows off that most important thing among us here. Also, weren't you already working on a new song as well? You can give Yurina some hints on how to improve her song and live performance."

Rola nods in agreement then looks at Mahiru "I guess that's true but… Don't you have work soon?"

Mahiru sighs "Yeah… I don't know if I'll have time today. We can't have Yurina tagging along without a reason too."

Koharu the got an idea "Ah, why don't we do that? One day manager."

Rola looks at Koharu "That's it!"

Shen then turns to Yurina "Yurina, become Mahiru's one day manager. I'm sure you'll learn a lot from doing it."

Yurina looks overwhelmed "Haa… I see. Wait, manager? But I don't even know what Mahiru does at her work!"

Mahiru stands up "Don't worry, it's not that hard. I'll send you my schedule so just review it."

Yurina "Yes, I'll review and do my best!"

Mahiru nods "Alright, then let's meet up at the front gate in 20 minutes. Go get yourself prepared, I need to prepare myself too."

Yurina give her a big nod "Yes!"

Yurina then runs off preparing.

Mahiru looks at everyone "You girls…"

Ako quickly gives in "Sorry, but I really have no idea how to interact with her."

Koharu "Ah, I know what you mean."

Mahiru then looks at Rola "Rola, couldn't you do it?"

Rola looks surprised by the question "Eh? Ah, yeah… I could've, sorry…"

Mahiru looks worried and asks "Are you alright?"

Rola tries to look tough "Yeah, I'm okay."

Mahiru "Is it about Yume?"

Ako and Koharu want to say something but couldn't find the word. They eventually looks downward and didn't say anything.

Rola grips her fist tight "It's okay, Yume will come back. I'm sure she will. Even if she doesn't, I'll find a way to drag her back."

Koharu then asks "Rola… Do you know something we don't?"

Rola "Eh? Like… what?"

Ako notices Rola's unusual response "Rola, you know something don't you?"

Rola "That's…"

Rola is trying to find a reasonable answer that can be said without talking about precure.

Mahiru sees Rola looking troubled decides to put a stop "If you can't say it, that's okay. I'm sure there is a good reason. Either way, I need to go now."

Mahiru stands up and starts walking out.

When she passes by Rola, Rola says "Thanks."

Mahiru looks at Rola "It's something better off remaining as a secret, right?"

Rola thinks for a moment "Probably."

Ako sighs "Alright if it's like that, then I won't ask anymore."

Rola is happy they understand but then looks at Koharu "Koharu…"

Koharu looks at Rola with a nice smile "Don't worry, I'm sorry for asking such weird question. I'm sure Yume will come back and tell us what happened."

Rola looks surprised for a moment but then smiles with confidence "That's right. Yume has always been like that. At times, Yume really is my pace girl."

Mahiru nods "Right, anyway, I got to go. Yurina might be waiting for me already."

Mahiru waves goodbye and runs off to meet with Yurina.

When Mahiru reaches the gate, Yurina is waiting with an overpacked adventure backpack. Her limousine has arrived as well.

Mahiru stops in front of Yurina "Uhmm, what is that?"

Yurina answers "Everything! Just in case if we run into trouble."

Mahiru looks like she is having a headache and asks while holding her head with one hand "Yurina… Do you already do this kind of preparation? I appreciate you thinking this much for me but..."

Yurina happily answers "Not this much, but I already bring at least a fourth of these with me. It's easier to use a backpack this time so I did."

Mahiru looks at Yurina and imagines her without a backpack while having even a fourth "Just where did you hide them? There are not enough pockets in our uniform…"

Yurina putting one of her hand into her skirt pockets while the other hand holding her skirt from the front. Mahiru then heard a faint sound of a zipper. Yurina then shows her hand through the skirt and then pulls a small stick of instant stain remover from under her skirt.

Mahiru looks dumbfounded "Eh? Wait… Did you modified your skirt yourself?"

Yurina nods "Yes! I learned it from my mother."

Mahiru "Your mother… If you don't mind, what does she do?"

Yurina "My mother? She is an adventurer. But rather than that, we'll be late if we don't leave soon!"

Yurina then pushes Mahiru into the car and the two leave the academy.

On the site of the photoshoot, Mahiru is quickly making poses as the cameraman taking photos one after another.

Cameraman "Good, Mahiru, you improved again."

Mahiru answer while keeping her facial look the same "Thanks!"

After a few more photos, the cameraman stops "Alright, we are done!"

Mahiru bows "Thank you very much!"

The cameraman takes his memory card out and holds it between his fingers "No, thank you for always giving me great photos. Oh, by the way, you planning on becoming a Floral Idol as well?"

Mahiru nods as she walks closer "Of course!"

He smiles "Then I'll look forward to it. Hmm? Speaking of which, that girl who failed…"

As he says that, Yurina walks next to them "Good work!"

Yurina gives Mahiru a towel and a drink with one more drink for the cameraman.

He looks surprised "Me too? Thanks!"

Mahiru wipes off her sweat and takes a sip. The cameraman takes a sip while looking at Yurina carefully.

Yurina asks "Uhmm, is something wrong?"

He answers "Ah, it's nothing. I'm just wondering how you failed to become a Floral Idol even with that amazing performance."

Yurina "Eh?"

Silence fills the room with the staff thinking of the same thing "Idiot."

Mahiru "Well…"

Yurina then says "It's okay, it just means I have to do better."

He then hesitantly says "Ah… I see. Then do your best! Mahiru too!"

Yurina nods "Yes! Thank you!"

Mahiru "Of course! Besides, I'm about to make an announcement about it soon."

Both of them look at Mahiru with a surprise. However, a moment after, Yurina begins flipping over her note to check Mahiru's schedule.

Yurina then says "Are you planning on announcing it at today's live?"

Mahiru "You got it!"

Yurina excitingly asks "Does this mean you got a new dress and song ready?"

Mahiru nods "Yeah, thanks to you."

Yurina blinks a few times "Me?"

Mahiru "Yes, I was able to complete my song after listening to yours. 'Though my anxiety is constant. The light you bring, shine deep in.' This part of your song got me thinking that I can just do what I want with my own light."

The cameraman then says "Hoo… That's interesting. Maybe Yurina will be just as popular soon."

He then picks up his camera and points at Yurina. Yurina hesitates a bit but quickly strikes a pose.

He then says "A little stiff, but good reaction. I like it. Yurina, if you ever need some photos taken, you can come to me."

Yurina "Yes, I will. Thank you!"

Yurina then remembers what Mahiru was saying "Ah, what did you mean by your own light?"

Mahiru smiles "I can tell you but… shouldn't we get moving?"

Yurina "Ah, yes!"

The two bid their goodbye and starting moving to the next location. Between each car ride, Mahiru tells Yurina a bit of her story. Mahiru then wraps it up right before her live performance of the day.

Mahiru "So that pretty much sums up everything. You helped me remember that I should just go straight in and chase what I want. I'm pretty confident in my performance, but I wasn't sure if I can achieve all of my new dreams."

Yurina asks "Your new dreams, what is it?"

Mahiru looks at Yurina with confidence "My biggest dream right now is to raise the bar of the modeling world to a never seen before height."

Yurina "That sounds…really hard."

Mahiru smiles "of course, but I definitely will do it."

Yurina smiles happily "My song is able to… hehe, thanks!"

Mahiru then adds "No, I should be the one saying thank you. Also, your song really shocked me. It's actually similar to mine."

Yurina "Is it? Can you show me a bit? Just a tiny bit?"

Mahiru "Nope, you will have to wait like everyone else."

Yurina stares at Mahiru for a moment "Alright, I got it. I'll wait."

Mahiru then stands up "Alright, it's about time for me to go."

Yurina "Eh?"

Mahiru walks away and opens the door. As soon as she does that, one staff stands in front of her.

He then says "Ah, Kasumi Mahiru, please get ready."

Mahiru nods "I understand, I'm just about to go over there."

Mahiru turns back at yurina "I can't show you the new song but I'll at least show you my best stage possible for today."

Yurina "Yes! Thank you very much!"

As Mahiru walks away, the staff looks at her and at Yurina.

Staff asks Yurina "New song? Wait, is it for the Floral Idol?"

Yurina wants to answer him properly but thinks maybe it's better to keep it as secretive as possible for Mahiru "Not sure, I don't know much about it."

Staff "Well, it's not strange for her to do the Floral Idol Challenge."

Yurina "I agree!"

Mahiru goes onto her stage and finishes her performance without any problem. However, as she looks at her fans, she couldn't help but notice a figure with blond heterochromia hair leaving the stadium.

Mahiru mutters "That's… Yume?"

Mahiru quickly announces her challenge to become Floral Idol and gets off stage. As Mahiru is running through the building, she almost crashes into Yurina.

Yurina "Ah… Uhmm, is something wrong?"

Mahiru quickly answers "It's Yume! She is here!"

Mahiru then continues to run with Yurina right behind her. When Mahiru opens the door and exits the building, she sees Yume. However, instead of her usual bright and colorful outfit, she is wearing a purple long dress while wearing sunglasses.

Mahiru "You are… Yume, right?"

She turns around and takes off her sunglasses "So you noticed."

Mahiru wants to run over but her foot would not move. Yume is giving off terrible chills to Mahiru.

Mahiru thinks "What is going on? This feeling is a bit similar to Elza back then but… is it worst? Am I... scared of Yume?"

Yume asks with a smile "Mahiru, is something wrong?"

Mahiru swallows her saliva and gathers her courage to asks "Yume, why did you leave?"

Yurina nods while agreeing "That's right! Can you tell us why? Everyone is wondering."

Yume sighs "There is only one thing I want. It is to become the true top idol."

Mahiru shouts "What do you mean by that? You already defeat Elza and Hime. Aren't you already standing at the pinnacle of an idol?"

Yume nods "Yes, but that's not enough. I realized it's not all fun being an idol and yet, I was just running away. To be the true top idol, I have to shine to a point that no one else can."

Mahiru "Yume… That... " Mahiru wants to say more, but she can understand her wish to shine brighter than anyone.

Yurina, however, mutters out loud "That sounds lonely…"

Yume looks at Yurina "Yurina, you are correct, but that's what it means to stand at the very top."

Yurina thinks for a moment and refutes "No, Yume won't stand at the very top alone. I believe the S4, Aria, and everyone else won't let you be alone. Also, me too, I'll definitely get there as well!"

Yume "You?" laughs for a bit "Hahaha, okay, sorry sorry. However, at your level, reaching the same height is impossible. Besides, you already fail to become a Floral Idol."

Mahiru gets angry from that "Yume!"

Yume continues "Ah, however, if you use that power, then maybe you have a chance."

Mahiru looks at Yurina "Power, Yurina, you can't rely on that power. If you keep using it, your"

Yurina "I know…" Yurina put her hand on her throat and continue "I may lose my voice, right?"

Mahiru "Then."

Yurina "It's okay, I don't plan on using it."

Yume "Too bad, I want to have all 16 Floral Idols as soon as possible. Well, at least I can expect who the 3rd Floral Idol could be, right? Mahiru."

Mahiru grasps her fist tight "Yume, just what… No, I'll take your challenge. I'll definitely become the next Floral Idol!"

Yume nods "Then I'll be expecting it. If you become one, I can forgive you and everyone for betraying me a little bit."

Yume's limousine arrives and she starts getting into it. Mahiru is confused and simply watch Yume leaves. Yurina did not move as well since everything that happened raises just as much confusion and questions for her.

As the car drives off, Mahiru mutters "Me and everyone… betraying Yume? What does that mean?"