A/N: Songs referred to: 1st - That's What You Get by Paramore / 2nd - Shounen by Nana Mizuki
CSBC – Clinton Street Baking Company, a popular breakfast spot in NY that I'd love to visit someday.
*Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoy the story! I'd appreciate your feedback.
THIRTY TWO
"What in God's name is this?!" Inuyasha stared slack-jawed at the sea of people screaming and flailing their hands in the air.
"I guess Kurenai's popularity back home makes sense." Miroku said as they watched the crowd go crazy over the siblings on stage listening to a guy talking with headphones and a piece of paper in hand.
Sango glared at the monk's statement, "It's not the same thing."
Ren and Kurenai turned to their direction and the two beamed upon seeing them and happily waved. They have the best seats in the house with a clear view of the stage behind the railing, under a tent with the crew.
"The crowd is going wild for multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning band Gemini!" one of the female hosts energetically began and the crowd exploded into chants of 'Gemini!' that almost blew their heads off.
"Let's say hi to Ren and Kurenai who are about to rock us out into the weekend." the other female host added, "Good morning you two!"
"Good Morning!" The siblings smiled at the hosts before waving out to their fans. It's beyond them how these two and the crowd can be so lively in this chilly, early morning. The sun has barely risen when they sleepily drove here and they arrived to a long line of fans eager to get in the venue.
The hosts looked down at Kurenai's injured foot, "I can't help but notice that you'll be performing with a brace on your foot Kurenai. Are you alright?"
The siblings explained to them how microphones and speakers work but the firsthand experience of how loud and clear they can hear them speak from a distance is astonishing.
"I'm fine. Thankfully, it's just a minor sprain but I will ask everyone to jump higher on my behalf!" she yelled out at the fans and they screamed in agreement.
"They're excited to have you here and surely they're excited for your tenth anniversary concert," said one of the hosts.
"We're excited too!" Ren agreed, "Are you gonna be there?!" he yelled unto the crowd and they went nuts with a resounding 'YEEEESSSS!' and 'Wooooo!'
The siblings grinned at the enthusiasm and Ren continued, "Yeah so, the concert is titled Rise, and will take place three weeks from now at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California and then three months after that, will be the National Stadium in Japan."
"You guys have a really strong connection to your Japanese roots to choose Japan as the only international venue."
"Yes. Our parents balanced the presence of both our American and Japanese heritage when they raised us." Kurenai stated.
"We wanted to add more dates and venues but at the moment, it's quite difficult." Ren added, "But we're glad that we can reach our fans in the Far East with the Japan concert."
"I bet your fans can't wait just like they can't wait to see you perform now." The host looked at the camera, "So without further ado, let's give it up for GEMINI!"
Applause roared as the siblings walked to their positions on stage.
Kurenai looked every bit a rockstar in an oversized, olive military jacket with the right side pushed off her shoulder showing her wolf printed black tee underneath, paired with black ripped jeans and burgundy flat boots on her left foot and her walker boot on the right.
Women swooned over Ren with his sunset colored electric guitar strapped across his body. He's wearing a black, acid wash jean jacket with rolled up sleeves over a white shirt printed with a black and white photo, paired with black ripped jeans and black sneakers.
The drumsticks ticked to three and in time with the first hammer on the drums, Kurenai kicked her injured foot in the air and the band burst into a loud, turbulent music that she and the fans began actively banging their heads to.
When Kurenai hopped on one of the steel platforms on stage and thrust her custom black chrome finish mic towards the audience, those from the Feudal era felt their hairs stand on end as the crowd sang while she brandished her hands guiding them through the song. It nailed home the sheer height of their friends' popularity.
The performance felt as if they're watching the sea amidst a storm. The music, a roaring thunderstorm with rhythmic torrential rain, the rocking heads like cresting waves entranced to follow Kurenai's powerful voice to shore. It's both chaotic and captivating and it drew emotions they've never felt from performances at the Feudal era.
Sesshoumaru never knew what goose bumps are… until now. He can feel the thrill of watching Kurenai's performance trying to burst out of his body through these tiny bumps on his skin.
Aside from her phenomenal singing, she's oozing passion and confidence as she fluttered around on stage. She has impeccable command of the performance that she's able to draw the audience's energy; making them loudly sing along and jump in time with her fist pumping in the air. She led the show to electrifying heights and the daiyoukai can feel it surge up and down his body.
Kurenai loves performing. She loves the energy, seeing the fans have fun, and sharing the moment with her brother and their band members, but a different kind of happiness filled her as she sang and danced her way to her friends' direction and saw the awe and excitement in their eyes. Her cheeks hurt from the huge smile she had seeing Shippo and Rin cheering and jumping up and down to the performance.
Ren joined Kurenai in singing and dancing for their friends for a few seconds then the siblings exchanged big smiles before turning back to the crowd.
The next song began with a tamed tune from the keyboard, bass guitar and drums that steadily escalated, hitting its peak when Kurenai and Ren joined with their guitars followed by Kurenai singing… in Japanese, to the surprise of their friends from the Feudal era.
Hearing their non-Japanese crowd cheer and sing along to the song shocked them even more. This is when they realized how loved the siblings' band really is and how the passion they pour into their music transcended language barriers.
Another hair-raising moment happened when as the chorus approached, Kurenai nodded at the audience,
"Sing it!" she shouted, and sing it they did. The siblings are visibly overjoyed as they watched the crowd fervently sing in Japanese, their mother's native language, a language they may not use often but is engraved in their souls.
The song eventually ended and the siblings performed two more English songs after. The energy never went down, the crowd never stopped singing or more accurately, shouting and jumping along to the songs.
Kurenai was a ball of energy hopping around and dancing through her injured foot while maintaining her phenomenal singing voice which they imagine is hard to do when moving around as much as she did. They can only imagine Kurenai performing when she's not injured.
Ren is no different from his sister, it's amazing to watch him jog and jump and dance and throw his head all over the stage with a guitar weighing on his shoulder the entire time. It didn't seem to affect him at all, he looked like he's having a great time during the whole performance.
"Mama!" Kurenai got tackled by Shippo and Rin as they walked towards them after thanking the hosts and crew of the show and saying their goodbyes.
The red-eyed giggled amidst the hugs, "Did you guys enjoy the show?" the question is not just meant for the kids.
"Yes mama!" the children yelped and looked up at her with sparkling eyes, "You were so soooo amazing!" Rin gushed and tightened her arms around Kurenai's waist.
"Thank you sweetheart." Kurenai returned the hug with her one arm around the little girl's shoulder.
Shippo turned to Ren while still latched on his mother, "You were super cool up there uncle!"
The olive-eyed ruffled the kitsune's hair, "Thanks buddy! We're glad you enjoyed it."
"You guys were just fantastic up there! It's no wonder you're very popular and have so many passionate fans!" Miroku praised.
"The loud and wild music was surprising but incredible! I still have goose bumps!" Sango rubbed her hand up her arm.
Kurenai smiled, "Thanks you guys. It was extra fun because you were there." Her eyes instinctively fell on the dog demon brothers, searching their faces for how they felt about their performance.
It surprised her when Inuyasha looked straight into her eyes with golden orbs brimming with pride, "You were amazing wench." A blush settled on his cheeks before looking down and Kurenai felt a little emotional at Inuyasha's straightforward compliment that wasn't coated in gruff words that she had to decipher.
"Thank you Inuyasha, it means so much coming from you," she said and the hanyou's blush went a deeper shade.
And then, they received praise from an unexpected source, "Both of you gave a brilliant performance and your voice Kurenai was extraordinary," the daiyoukai said and both siblings swelled with pride. For THE Lord Sesshoumaru to give them such a high praise is such an honor.
"Thank you Sesshoumaru," the siblings smiled at the daiyoukai.
"Well, let's celebrate your first Gemini show with a huge breakfast!" Ren turned to their band members chatting next to another van, "Guys! Let's grab breakfast at CSBC!"
"Yes!" Kurenai cheered, "Rin, Shippo! They have the best pancakes in New York! You're gonna love it!" she pulled both kids to the van, excited for the feast they're about to have.