"I would like to welcome you
To the World of (to the world of)
Fast money, fast cars, big diamond rings
Chief chains and the girls of
Fake smiles, broken hearts and if you looking
For your real love
You wont find it here
If you looking for your real love
Well goodnight my dear."
- "Welcome to the World," T.I. Featuring Kanye West & Kid Cudi
Rei was just as surprised as the singer if her wide eyes and bewildered expression was any indication. Minako couldn't think of anything to say, her mind shutting down the second she saw the beautiful woman at the door. She had not been expecting her ex of all people. Honestly – Hino Rei, in publicity? Hell, Santa Claus would've been less of a shock.
The lavender-eyed woman snapped out of her stupor and wordlessly grabbed Utena's arm, dragging her out of the office and shutting the door.
"You never told me she was my next client."
The shorter woman winced at the venom in Rei's voice. "If I told you, you would've refused."
"So?"
Utena waited for a few seconds to give the flustered woman time to calm. Finally, Rei took a deep breath and stared at her superior.
"I told you last week that her popularity was dropping, you should have known that she would come to us."
"But why me? Why don't you handle her case? You know my past with her."
"First of all," Utena retorted calmly, "you're the best music publicist in the market, of course when a big name like Mina comes, you'll be on the case. Second, I've told you many times, you have to keep your personal life separate from your professional life."
"They're the same damn thing when it concerns her. She's my ex – she left me for music. And now you expect me to help her advance the very thing she left me for?"
The shorter woman placed a hand on the hysterical woman's shoulders, piercing her lavender eyes with her cinnamon ones.
"So, you'll let her be reduced to another pop star that came and went? No matter how much she hurt you, Rei, you're not the type to just let her suffer like this. This is Minako, the love of your life, not some one night stand."
The miko gave a grunt, a sign that, as much as she hated to admit it, her boss was right. Regardless of the past, she couldn't let Minako's career fall to pieces.
"Besides, it's your job we're talking about, Hino. Turning down a client as big as Minako will greatly harm your standing in the company, especially if it's discovered that you refused the case on account of personal reasons."
There was another grunt of reluctant agreement. Utena could tell her friend was as good as on the job. "Third, think of how much it will help your career if you manage to help Minako. You will have salvaged what Siren destroyed."
Rei sighed weakly, her shoulders sagging enough for the shorter woman to wrap an arm around them. The brown-eyed Utena smiled, pinching the fiery woman's cheeks.
"Besides, I'm willing to see if I can convince the board to give you three weeks off with pay and a ticket to England if you pull this off."
The miko's disbelief was enough of a reason for her to ignore that fact that someone was pinching her cheek. Her friend almost laughed at the excitement visible in her eyes.
"Are you serious?"
The older woman smiled and nodded. Rei ran a hand through her hair and sighed again.
"Fine, I'll do it."
Utena smiled motherly at the younger woman, giving her a reassuring look. "You'll be fine. I'll go in there with you if you want."
"Will you?"
The miko's voice sounded unusually hesitant and scared – a show of vulnerability that Utena committed to memory. Despite the supportive smile, Rei could not for the life of her make the butterflies in her stomach go away.
"You can do this. Minako's your past, not your present, nor your future. There's a reason you're known as one of the best, you can do this."
Rei nodded and took a deep breath. She watched Utena's hand intently as it turned the knob.
Minako was snapped out of her shock when she heard the door close. She shook her head, looking around to see if anyone noticed her whisper. Fortunately, everyone was too preoccupied with Rei's abrupt exit.
"That was… strange," commented Patrick.
"And rude," added Mei with a pout.
"So that was their expert."
Everyone turned to Jen, who sat on the couch with her arms crossed and a peculiar look on her face. Babs shrugged.
"I guess so."
There was silence for a few seconds before Mei spoke again. "They were both preeeeetty."
Minako tried to ignore the bubbly tone that the Chinese girl used, but couldn't. Her statement was correct, for the most part. As far as she was concerned, Rei was more along the lines of beautiful but the woman that was with her was very pretty. She had the classic petite figure that Asians were known for, delicate and shy.
"Of course, you'd notice that," Jen commented. "You love pretty things, after all."
"As if you didn't notice them," Mei shot back dryly. "Your eyes were glued on the one with the really long hair."
"I was simply admiring her blouse."
Even Patrick rolled his eyes as if to say 'nice try.' Minako, however, felt her heart skip a beat. Jen noticed Rei. Okay, so her fellow senshi was drop dead gorgeous and her stylist had excellent taste in women. Besides, neither woman was currently her girlfriend. She shouldn't have a problem with it.
Again, there was silence and for that, the blonde singer was glad. It gave her time to think, though she didn't much want to. Whether or not Rei will be handling her case didn't matter, though it certainly seemed like she wasn't just another employee.
Okay, that was a complete lie. The woman she had hurt and abandoned might be handling her career in Japan. While she knew Rei was not the type to let her feelings interfere with her work, she couldn't help but be afraid.
How was she going to face her ex-girlfriend after what she had done? Their last encounter did nothing but show her how much the miko hated her.
"I hope this expert of theirs speaks English," commented Barbara suddenly.
"Was Siren so lacking that they could not provide you with even that much?"
The confident and amused voice that spoke, in perfect English without much of an accent, caused everyone to stand. Minako's heart pounded as she set her eyes on the woman she'd abandoned for the second time in less than five minutes. She felt her mouth go dry.
Rei stood by the door, the shock and disbelief from earlier completely gone. She had reverted back to her elegant, confident and graceful self. It was one thing seeing the miko in all her glory and poise when she was in a T-shirt and shorts, it was another altogether to see her in business attire.
She looked absolutely delicious. A blouse and black leather pants could look completely tacky or unprofessional for a publicist, but not Rei. It was somehow appropriate, and worked to add a kind of danger to her presence.
"I'm sorry about my behavior earlier," the miko continued, a dazzling smile on her face as she approached the group of Americans. "I suddenly remembered that there was some… business, to take care of."
Minako hated the way her ex's eyes turned to her at the word "business." At the same time, she wished those lovely lavender orbs would stay on her, but they didn't. Rei was announcing to her, loud and clear, that she saw their old relationship meant nothing to her emotionally or else she wouldn't have used the word "business."
"That's quite all right," assured Barbara with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I don't believe I know your name."
"Of course, how terribly rude of me. My name is Rei, Rei Hino."
The miko shook the redhead's hand before turning to the somewhat stoic woman beside her.
"This is my superior, Utena Takahashi, Junior Vice President of Athena Management."
The blonde singer didn't know why her stomach dropped when she saw the brown-eyed woman. Perhaps it was her stoicism that bothered her. Whatever the case, she just didn't get a good feeling from her.
"A pleasure," Barbara responded, shaking Utena's hand. "I'm Barbara O'Reilly. My client, Minako Aino."
Minako tried to calm her speeding heart when Rei turned to shake her hand. The eyes she once adored above all else pierced her own, the intensity of the gaze contrasting with the forced smile on the lovely face. The singer felt the blood rush to her ears, and her palms, to her utter dismay, started to sweat.
The fiery woman offered the blonde her hand, her heart pounding in her chest. Minako stared at the offered hand for a second, the shock plain on her face. Her eyes then wandered back to the miko's before joining their hands.
The singer felt a spark jump from the fire senshi's hand onto hers and travel quickly up her arm, her skin tingling. She let go of Rei's hand as casually as possible, even as her heart pounded.
The miko was just as surprised when she felt a tingle and a spark. She thought it was impossible to get that feeling – at least with the blonde. Her eyes never even blinked as Utena shook hands with the star she will, with luck, sign to the agency.
"This is Jennifer Allen, Minako's stylist."
The black-haired Aussie shook Rei's hand, her green eyes taking in the beautiful Asian. If Minako was beautiful in that radiant and innocent kind of way, this woman was beautiful in the sexy and dark way. Perhaps she'll give her a try…
"Next to her is Ting Mei Li, Mina's hair stylist."
The senshi of Mars felt a genuine smile tug at her lips at the energy the shorter woman radiated. She was kind of like Usagi, a bundle of cuteness and hyperactivity.
"And last, Patrick Jackson, the makeup artist."
The African American man flashed Rei a pearly smile when they shook hands. The woman returned it with a sexy little half-smile of her own, hooding her eyes with her long lashes.
"Please, sit."
Minako silently took her seat between Jen and Mei again as the two Athena representatives sat across from them in two armchairs. The young woman that showed them all in returned, waiting by Rei's chair.
"What would you all like to drink?"
"Coffee!" Mei answered enthusiastically.
None of the occupants of the room thought that was a good idea, but allowed the young woman to ask for her desired drink.
"Tea, please," Minako said with a small smile.
"Me too," Patrick added.
"Coffee for Babs and me," Jen finished.
The girl made her exit quickly, leaving the room silent for a few seconds. It was Barbara that spoke up first.
"Miss Hino, I heard that you originally worked for Siren."
Rei was obviously surprised, though she covered it quickly with a warm smile. Minako felt her face heat up just from the sight.
"Yes, I did."
"Siren was the company that discovered your talent, was it not?"
It wasn't unusual for the redhead to be on the offensive, but for once, her client was rather annoyed. Her manager knew so much about the beautiful woman, but didn't even feel the need to tell the star they'd be working together.
'Why should she, Aino? She has no idea you even know Rei, much less what she meant to you.'
"That is correct."
The Japanese superstar tried her best to stare at the miko without being noticed.
"May I ask why you're currently working for Athena then?"
It was then the secretary decided to return with their drinks. After placing the appropriate beverage before each individual, she took her leave.
Minako took immediate notice that Rei didn't move to make her coffee. To her annoyance, Utena took the miko's cup, and added two creams and three sugars – the way the miko preferred her coffee.
"Of course. It's something most wonder about."
The lavender-eyed woman shot her superior a grateful little smile when she was handed her coffee. She took a sip and closed her eyes to enjoy the feel of the warm drink move through her.
"While I'll always remain thankful to Siren for giving me a chance," she said, opening her intense eyes to regard Barbara evenly. "I couldn't stay with a company that hindered my potential. Appreciation and gratitude can tie you to a place for only so long."
"I see."
The redhead found Rei Hino refreshing. She wasn't falsely sweet and didn't kiss her ass like most people she dealt with. There was an honesty and aloofness about the woman that she appreciate.
"So, what can you do for us, Miss Hino?"
The raven-haired publicist smiled confidently and made eye contact with the redhead, her confidence almost palpable.
"I can give you everything that you lost with Siren and more."
Barbara arched a brow, surprisingly not finding the younger woman arrogant. "Oh?"
"Miss Aino-"
Minako winced at the cold tone with which her ex said her name.
"-has always been one of the biggest names in Japan. But seeing as how she hasn't returned for a long time-"
The accusation in Rei's voice was well deserved, but still painful.
"- the fans were starting to lose faith in her. So, when she returned, they were ecstatic. Siren used the buzz to get her on every big name show they could. They flooded the market with her image and her sound. I'm sure you've noticed that Ms. Aino is all over the place. Simply put, the problem lies with the overexposure of Ms. Aino's brand."
Minako's crew nodded, finding the truth behind the beautiful woman's words. The public was simply sick of seeing the star everywhere. Minako Fever had turned into a Minako epidemic.
"So, what do you propose?"
The raven-haired woman sipped her coffee, a casual action to all but to the blonde singer. It was what the miko did to heighten the anticipation or, sometimes, to stall for more time while she thought her plan through. She wasn't sure which it was this time, but it certainly created a suspenseful wait.
"To start off, we take Miss Aino off the map for a while, not long, maybe a week or so just to get the public interested again."
"That makes sense," Mei murmured with a nod.
"Yes, but we didn't plan for Mina to be here for too long."
The young woman in question looked at her manager, surprised she was thinking about the time limit they'd put on her vacation when her career in her native country was in jeopardy.
"Unfortunately, when you hit a snag like this, careful planning often flies out the window. You'll have to extend your stay, I'm afraid."
Rei hated the suggestion and she took another sip from her cup to keep herself from showing it. Having her ex-girlfriend stay in the country any longer would probably kill her, especially now that they'll be working together closely.
"Okay, say we do extend our trip and go with your plan to keep Mina out of the spotlight for a while. Then what?"
"We re-introduce Miss Aino to the public, but not the way Siren did."
Rei shifted in her seat to avoid looking at her potential client. Avoiding eye contact made things a little easier… theoretically.
"Siren wanted max publicity and as many appearances as they could squeeze in, sacrificing the bond between your client and her fans. This time, we start with a more low-key approach. Fewer shows, but staying for longer to give the host ample time to ask questions and get the fans reacquainted with Ms. Aino."
Babs nodded. Everything so far made sense and would work in theory. But she wasn't about to jump into anything as quickly as she did when they signed with Siren. She had been impatient and that had cost Minako dearly. She wasn't about to make the same mistake twice.
"You can consider it, of course," the miko said with a mix of assurance and a hint of a warning. "But not for too long. Every second you're under Siren's contract is damaging Ms. Aino's career. I'm afraid it doesn't really leave you with much of a choice."
Minako admired the way the hot-tempered woman was handling the meeting. She was confident in herself and her abilities without being obnoxious, suggestive without being overbearing, and understanding but focused on her own agenda.
Barbara turned to look at the blonde singer, who seemed to be in dreamland at the moment. She nudged her and arched a brow. The blonde shrugged nonchalantly, a little too casually since she was making an important choice regarding her career in Japan.
"I've already said it once, Babs," Minako said simply. "Do whatever it takes."
The redhead nodded firmly before turning to Rei. "We accept."
The miko was torn between crying and jumping for joy. On the one hand, she just landed the case of a lifetime. One the other, she just signed on to work with her ex for at least a few weeks. She settled for a pleased smile instead.
"Good choice. Of course, since you're under contract with Siren, we won't be able to sign anything to insure our partnership."
"We don't go back on our word," Barbara responded.
"Nor do I plan on leaving with career a mess."
The singer's determined and firm tone caused everyone to look at her in surprised. She shrugged again and leaned against the back of the couch, suddenly feeling very self-conscious – what with Rei staring at her.
"We'll get it straightened out," the miko said to the singer without malice and then, before she could stop herself, added, "I promise."
Minako felt a warm fire burn its way through her entire body at the two simple words. It was all the reassurance she needed, since she knew Rei never broke a promise.
"But we're still under contract with Siren."
Mei's whine popped everyone's bubble. Well, Minako's, anyhow.
"Yes," the publicist said with a frown. "We'll take care of that, too. We can't sign Ms. Aino until she is released from Siren."
The lavender-eyed woman turned to Utena, who had been silent through the entire meeting. The woman took her cue and leaned forward, smiling. "We'll put our best attorney on it. It might take a few days, but I'm sure we'll be able to work something out. That is, if you're comfortable letting our legal division look into Ms. Aino's contract with Siren."
Barbara was only too happy to agree – there wasn't much Minako's legal team could do with a contract written in Japanese. She also didn't have enough contact with the recording company's Japanese branch to trust them with the task.
"I'll have that sent over later today."
Rei nodded. "If there anything else we can do, please do not hesitate to call. I know Ms. Aino is technically not our client yet, but we look forward to working with you and will do what we can to make this trip as enjoyable as possible."
"Thank you," Barbara said. "Let me know if there's anything else you need to make the transition as smooth as possible."
Minako, sensing that the meeting over, stood. Part of her wanted nothing more than to run the hell out of the office, while another part of her wanted to stay with Rei. Even if the beauty ignored her for most of the meeting and hated her, simply being in her presence made the singer feel more… alive.
"Thank you for your time." Barbara was pleased with the meeting and Athena in general. Something about Rei Hino made her feel like she was leaving her client's fate in good hands.
"Thank you for considering us. It was a pleasure meeting you," was Rei's polite reply as she shook hands with Babs.
The miko felt her chest constrict as it came time to shake Minako's hand once again. Her mouth went dry, though she kept that ridiculous grin plastered on her pretty face. She was even more anxious when she saw not even a flicker of anxiety in her ex's baby blues.
Utena watched with a guarded gaze as Minako and Rei regarded each other hesitantly. The singer was the one to offer her hand this time. The miko, wanting to appear as in control as ever, took the hand and shook it firmly. Both women were excellent actresses, but the brown-eyed Junior V.P. saw the emotions playing in their eyes.
Though the blonde singer knew her ex hated her as much as she did at the beginning of the meeting, she somehow felt that the hostility had lessened. Maybe it was the way the forced smile was a little larger than when they shook hands the first time. Maybe it was the way her lavender eyes weren't as cold as steel. But the leader of the senshi wasn't stupid enough to believe that anything other than the business agreement was the cause of these changes. Still she basked in the thought of "just maybe."
"It's was a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Aino."
'Again,' Rei added mentally. She felt her heart skip a beat when she received a bright smile in return. She could tell from the singer's eyes that Minako knew exactly how she felt about her, but the smile seemed genuine, for some reason.
'The Minako affect,' the miko thought dryly, with a hint of unconscious fondness.
"Same," was the blonde's short, but honest, reply.
The 5.8 second hand shake seemed to last forever to the two. Or maybe it was just that they both wished it would last forever – one consciously and one unconsciously.
The group finished their goodbyes, and Rei's secretary showed Minako's group the way out. She closed the door behind her as they left, leaving Utena and Rei in silence.
Utena, as usual, was the first to speak up. "That could've been worse."
"Oh, yes, of course," was the not entirely sarcastic reply.
"Hey, at least you landed the contract, in a way. You know what this means?"
"Cha-ching?"
Utena rolled her eyes as she sat down on the miko's desk. "No, your reputation, along with Athena's, is about to sky rocket."
"If I can pull this off."
"Don't be ridiculous," the Junior V.P. scolded. "Of course you can. You wouldn't have been assigned to it if you couldn't."
"I don't know, Siren's made a complete mess."
"And you'll clean it up."
The older woman leaned over and cupped Rei's cheek, causing the miko to smile. They were both silent for a split second before Utena spoke again, softer and gentler this time.
"Besides, you promised."