Roadshow
Chapter 3:
Sharp Dressed Man
In the end, Mio Akiyama was wrong on the time it took for them to get from Tokyo to Las Vegas. It actually took eleven hours if one were to include time between connecting flights, which in turn included declaring items at the gate, passing through increased security, walking to the charter plane, and so on and so forth.
"I remember when I was still in grade school when I saw them come down," she said to Ritsu as the plane continued its way to Las Vegas.
"What came down?"
"The towers."
"We were only eleven years old when that happened. I remembered that I was crying in your arms, asking you, 'Ritsu, why is it that so many people had to die like that?' It was one of the scariest days of my life."
She was watching the clouds pass by the window. "And this is another reason I sometimes get scared when I ride on airplanes. But if someone tries to hijack plane, I will kick their ass."
"Ritsu..." The tears were misting in her eyes.
"I told you that day that there are mean people in this world that try to take advantage of innocent people like you and me. Mio. If I have to protect you from anyone that dares take advantage of you, or—God forbid—dares to kill you...I will stop them. Even if my own life is at stake."
She blushed, but held Ritsu's hand with a smile. "I will do the same for you. Thanks."
"At the end of the day, we're Hokago Tea Time, and Islamic terrorists have no effect on us, ahahahahahah! OW!" A headbump, which Mio kissed away with a giggle. Ritsu rested her head on Mio's lap, sticking her tongue out as Mio petted her tresses, taking out the hairband and playing with her long bangs. "Mio?"
"Ritsu. I want you to ditch this hairband for once. Try it for one day."
"Hey Ricchan," Yui Hirasawa said in front of her, "what are you guys talking about? Ooooh! You lost your hairband?"
"Mio took it off from me, Yui. And we were remembering September 11th."
"Oh, you mean the day when those planes went BOOOOM! into the buildings? Like that?"
"There's more to it than that, Yui," Nodoka Manabe added.
"I felt bad for the people in New York City after that stuff happened," Tsumugi Kotobuki said. "It was horrible."
"I get scared when someone asks me about that 9/11," Azusa Nakano added.
"Wasn't that a tragedy or what?" Ui Hirasawa said to her.
"Hard to believe," Jun Suzuki said. "But at least we're still here!"
"And we're here to stay."
Yui's stomach growled. "Ohhhh, it could use something. Like sushi! Or chili!"
"You ever heard of this thing in America called Cincinnati chili?" Tsumugi asked the others.
"What's that?" Ritsu asked, an eyebrow rising over half-lidded eyes of suspicion.
"Well, it's a type of chili that doesn't even have any chili peppers or powder."
"What? Blasphemy! How the hell can there be a chili that has no chili in it?"
"The people in Cincinnati are pretty weird people for not including peppers, but they include things like allspice, cloves, and chocolate."
"Double blasphemy! Chocolate and chili? Mother of God, are these people mad or something?"
"The ancient Aztecs, if you recall in one of our lectures earlier this year," Sawako Yamanaka explained, "drank chili with their chocolate. And both ingredients are used to make the modern Mexican sauce known as mole poblano. I've actually tried it at one of the restaurants in Shibuya called Fonda de la Madrugada that makes this from scratch. It's really good, and they don't cut any corners while doing it."
"Sawa-chan, where is Cincinnati?" Yui asked her.
"It's a city in the American state of Ohio."
"Oooooh! So there is a state in America where Japanese is the official language!"
"Yui, why you think that is the case?" Ritsu deadpanned as the others laughed.
"Because they used our word as their word. So if you are in the State of Ohio, you are in the State of Good Morning!"
"Idiot, that 'ohayo' is different from this Ohio. The romaji of 'ohayo' and the English spelling of 'Ohio' are different. You have to distinguish O-H-A-Y-O from O-H-I-O."
She tilted her head sideways. "There is a difference?"
"I pray to the mothers of Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad, Allah, Baha'u'llah and Confucius that Yui here does not have a brain fart when we have our concert."
The others nodded except for Yui, who was clueless. "Eh? I'm clueless." The collective stares were cold. Dead cold. Cold as ice. "Thank you. Teheheheheh..."
"This is going to be a long day, peoples, if Yui does not know her states. Mugi, you have a map for her?"
"Here," she said, handing a travel-sized map to the Hirasawa sisters.
"Whoa," Yui said. "Hey, Hawaii is on here! My favorite state!"
"Our favorite, onee-chan," Ui added.
"Some of the names sound funny, though. Co-lo-ra-do? Te-ku-sa-su? Oh look, there's the Good Morning State of Ohio! Mis-sou-ri? Is that also known as Kanashii? Because misery is sadness."
"That grade school innocence is hard to rub off of her," Ritsu said to Mio and Mugi. "What do you think?"
"She can't help it," Mio deadpanned.
"Can't blame her," Mugi added. "So cute..."
"You find everything cute," Ritsu snarked. "Even beggar's velvet."
"Soft and fluffy..."
"Mugi, do you know what beggar's velvet is?" Nodoka asked her. "It's lint from the dryer."
"But I love to touch it before I throw it away."
"Oh, heavens; I need something to drink right now," Ritsu yelped. A flight attendant on board the jet handed her a bottle of water, to which she gulped down in one fell swoop. "Ah, that washes the bad taste off my mouth and into my bowels."
"Your hell is now a heaven?" Yui asked her, clueless.
"Attendant! Another!" Jun laughed and Mugi smiled as Azusa watched Ritsu drink another bottle of water out of frustration for Yui's poor choice of humor. "If I hear another..."
"You're gonna have to go to the restroom after this, huh Ricchan?"
"Mio!" she wailed, burying her face in between her ladyfriend's cleavage. "Yui is...Yui is...!"
"Hey Yui, you may want to quit talking to Ritsu for a while," she said to her.
"Sorry, Mio-chan, Ricchan."
"Here, let me calm you down," Mio said to her, silencing her plight with a long French kiss.
"Oh dear. Oh goodness me, my head is feeling light again," Tsumugi said as Nodoka plugged her nostrils again. As if on cue, the rush came from another tender moment between those two, sensationalized by her vivid imaginations of Mitsu love reaching an uncontrollable high at the next level.
"What are they doing? What are they doing?" Jun wanted to know. "Aaaah! Hey! Why are you blinding my eyes, Azusa?"
"If you see these two making out, you are toast, Jun!"
"Ehhhh! Don't do that to your best friend! I'm not trying to be a peeping tom; I see this all the time!"
"You can do it with me when we go in the hotel, Jun," Ui offered.
"What?" Azusa couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Ui? You would actually...?"
"Show me the tricks, Ui! Please, Master Ui!" Jun was a begging puppy, her proverbial tail wagging side to side.
"At ease, grasshopper. But we'll take it nice and slow. No need to rush."
"You two are hopeless," Azusa said to a vigorously-nodding Jun. "I hope it's not just kissing and footsies for you two amateurs."
"Now, now, be nice to Ui, Azunyan," Yui said, shaking a finger. "You don't want me to be mad at you for being a bad kitty, right?"
"Wh...what does that have to with anything?"
"Everything, koneko-chan. Everything."
Azusa sighed and closed her eyes in frustration. It didn't make any sense for her to be exhausted after chastising Ui and Jun over consummation. She saw ripples of sand-colored rock that resembled an endless, edible dessert made out of chocolate and some fruit-colored syrup. Then her stomach grumbled. The pangs arrived.
Mio saw some buildings below her, including one that looked like a needle. "Oh my God, are we...?"
"We're here!" Ritsu said with glee. "We're in Las Vegas!"
"Unbelievable..."
"Slots, bingo, poker, blackjack, craps...hookers and drugs!" Jun proclaimed. "Sin City, baby! The one and only!"
"Oy, Jun, relax," Azusa said to her. Her stomach was grumbling again.
"Don't worry if you guys are hungry," Sawako said. "I just received a call from one of the people at Bally's and they have the buffet reserved for us. You won't be staying there, though. After we eat, we're checking in at another hotel."
"Where's that?" Yui asked.
"It's a secret. Your luggage and instruments will be sent over to the hotel in advance."
"Ehhhh? Giita too?"
"Giita will be fine."
"Elizabeth as well?" Mio asked, concerned.
"What about Muttan?" asked Azusa.
"All your instruments will be all right," Sawako said to them, "they are going to be kept in a room until you check in this afternoon. That's what they told me on the call."
"Sheesh. When you're living first class, you're living first class," said Ritsu to the crew.
"And we're only high school students from Japan, that's the weird thing about all of this," Tsumugi said.
"You're part-Finnish, though."
"But still..."
"The time is currently 11:15 a.m. Pacific Standard Time," said James O'Connor, the pilot for the charter flight. "The temperature in Las Vegas is currently 90º Fahrenheit. Ladies and gentlemen, as we start our descent, please make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their full upright position. Make sure your seat belt is securely fastened and all carry-on luggages are stowed underneath the seat in front of you or in the overhead bins. Please turn off all electronic devices until we are safely parked at the gate. Thank you."
The plane touched down on the runway without any issues.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Las Vegas McCarran International Airport. Local time is 11:20 a.m. PT and the temperature is 91º Fahrenheit. For your safety and comfort, we ask that you please remain seated with your seat belt fastened until I turn off the Fasten Seat Belt sign. This will indicate that we have parked at the gate and that it is safe for you to move about. Please check around your seat for any personal belongings you may have brought onboard with you and please use caution when opening the overhead bins, as heavy articles may have shifted around during the flight. If you require deplaning assistance, please remain in your seat until all other passengers have deplaned. One of our crew members will then be pleased to assist you. We remind you to please wait until inside the terminal to use any electronic devices or to smoke in the designated areas. On behalf of Southwest Airlines and the entire crew, I'd like to thank you for joining us on this trip and we are looking forward to seeing you on board again in the near future. Have a nice day and good luck with the concert!"
"Thank you!" the band said in perfect English. They would be doing this for a while. They were all foreigners, after all.
"Hooray, we are finally here!" Yui Hirasawa said, hopping, skipping and jumping off the plane giddily. "Las Vegas, baby! Whoooo!"
"It's a bit hot, though," Azusa said. "I think I'm gonna be tanned again by the time we're through."
"We expect it, Azunyan."
"Quit saying it with a straight face!" she shot back, unenthused. The airline staff on the tarmac carried the instruments and luggage to a bus that forwarded the luggage to the Palms, where the staff there was awaiting its arrival.
As the band passed through Terminal 1, the band security surrounded them as they walked, forming a moving enclosure to prevent any fans from getting unauthorized autographs. Most onlookers didn't pay much attention, and were actually confused as to why they were so many sharp-dressed men escorting the group of nine women.
"Oooh, look, is this a slot machine?" Yui asked Sawako as they stopped to take a look.
"Yes, but you're not supposed to touch it," she replied.
"We can at least post next to one, can we?"
She sighed. "Fine. Everybody, gather around!"
Ritsu cued Mio to whip out her camera. "All right, to celebrate our arrival in Las Vegas, let's take it!" A snap, with victory signs aplenty.
"Is our bus at the entrance?" Ui asked Miss Sawako.
"I think it should be. Ah, there it is." A Coach America shuttle with special livery of the band was being protected by airport security from onlookers and the public. "Let's go."
Yui was shocked. "Ehhhh? First it's the plane. And now we got our own bus with our faces on it?" She pinched herself. "This is not a dream! Come to me, Mr. Hokago Bus Time!" She skipped her way to the bus, while the others had to give chase so that she didn't draw unnecessary attention to herself.
"It's so spacious and fresh," Tsumugi said, taking a whiff as she plopped on to her seat.
"Feels comfy too, and I like the video monitors," said Nodoka.
"Unreal, unreal." Jun was at a loss for words as the others took their seats.
"So our first stop is going to be at the Bally's Casino, where we will have our brunch," Sawako said, taking a look at her itinerary. "After we eat, we're going to our hotel. Good?"
"Yes, Miss Sawako!" they all said.
"Good early afternoon, ladies of the Hokago Tea Time Group," said the bus driver on the intercom in Japanese. "My name is Jerry Takeda, I will be your driver for the duration of your stay here in Las Vegas. I personally welcome you to our wonderful city, where I understand you will be performing at a show this Friday at Sam Boyd Stadium in front of a sellout crowd."
"Sellout?" the band asked, surprised.
"The word has been out regarding your music. And people want to listen to it. Even if they don't know Japanese." Laughter. "Mostly it's because you girls are so cute. I'm also one of your fans." More laughter and giggles.
"Anyway, with that said, we will be heading over to Bally's Hotel and Casino Resort for food, and then I will drive you wonderful girls over to the Palms Hotel, which is where you will be staying. If you have any questions for me, I will have Miss Sawako, your chaperone, ask them on your behalf. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy the ride and once again, Welcome to Las Vegas."
The driver started up the engine, and the bus was on its way.
"Ugh, cigarette smoke." As the nine of them entered the casino, a coughing Yui was still curious about the inner workings of a slot machine. The members had their Japanese yen converted into dollar and cents as they passed through customs in LAX, and she had a quarter to burn.
They were near the entrance of the Sterling Brunch Buffet room when Yui saw a slot machine that was untouched. "Hey Yui," Ritsu asked. "Hurry up, the others are waiting."
"Ricchan, I'm gonna try it." The others halted and turned to Yui.
"Yui, head over here, you're not supposed to touch that!" said Mio.
"Onee-chan, they're waiting for you!" Ui called out.
Yui dropped the quarter in the slot.
"Yui Hirasawa, get over here now!" Sawako shouted, anger veins popping.
But Yui pulled down the lever. "Sorry, my hand slipped."
The others screamed in horror, as if the end of the world arrived in Glitter Gulch. Yui Hirasawa had used a slot machine, even though she was technically four years shy of legal age.
Sawako walked over to Yui, stretching her mouth. "Hirasawa, you are in a lot of trouble after-huh?"
She turned around. The machine was still dinging. Other middle-aged men and women looked at her, Yui and the machine. One guy in his 80s with a cigarette in his mouth dropped it in profound shock.
"Yui-chan, did you just...?"
She was in a panicked mood as her eyes turned to rings. "Ehhh? Sawa-chan, I didn't mean to...!"
"Enough talk. Yui-chan, go to the buffet room, I will meet you later."
"Okay." With hanging arms, she dragged herself to the Sterling Brunch Room in shame.
The old vets were looking at Miss Sawako with envy. The machine was still dinging. Sawako did her best to fake being surprised, dancing around, flashing the victory sign. "Oh my! I am a big winner! I am greatest! Ni-hon! Ni-hon! Ni-hon!"
"Dammit, Yui, did you just actually win on a slot machine?" Ritsu asked as the eight of them entered the room.
"I think I did, I don't know. I'm kinda scared."
"Yui-sempai, you're gonna be in a lot of trouble if Miss Sawako finds that you've hit the jackpot underage," Azusa warned.
"Don't worry, Azunyan, everything's gonna be all...right?" She turned around. It was Miss Sawako. "Eheheheheh, Sawa-chan? OWW!" A headbump from the teacher.
"Good news everybody!" she exclaimed as Yui favored her comeuppance.
"What is it?" Jun asked.
"I won $615,883 thanks to Yui-chan!"
"WHAAAAAT?" the others exclaimed. That was 50,387,786 Japanese yen.
Tsumugi couldn't believe it. "Yui-chan won that many?"
"Is the money going to go to the school or something?" Nodoka asked.
"Here's how it will go," Miss Sawako said to them. "First off, the money will be paid in installments of 2,518,962 yen for the next 20 years. It's going to be divided 70-30. 70% to the student council and 30% to the light music club.
"Can't it be 50-50?" Ritsu complained.
"The student council needs the money more than you guys," Nodoka said.
"Nodoka, you're mean."
"I'm just being honest here."
"But the first installment I have in my fat wallet." She gave each of the other eight wads of $20 bills. "Spend this wisely. This is $2,000 I am giving to each of you. We will be compensated for our concert, but please, be frugal when spending this-HEY HIRASAWA AND TAINAKA, GET YOUR ASSES BACK OVER HERE!" she shouted to Yui and Ritsu, trying to leave for one of the nearby stores.
"Sorry, Sensei!" they both said, scurrying back.
"Good God! Anyway, use this cash wisely, and don't go on a spree without me being with you."
"Yes, ma'am," they all said.
"Now this is the buffet I was telling you about," Sawako said, showing the girls trays and trays of steak, seafood, vegetables, other delectable entrees and desserts.
"Whoa."
"It's just as advertised. And all the food is made from scratch. Generally, this buffet is only open on Sundays, but the cooks decided to make one especially for us, so it's a bit scaled down. And they included the Japanese dishes, too. Now, this buffet has been in existence since-huh?" She turned around. "You all are going to them already? Good grief!"
Their collective hunger proved too much to handle. The history lessons had to be placed in the back burner for now.
"Itadakima~~~su," they all said before digging in.
"Hey Yui," Ritsu asked her guitaring airhead compatriot sitting next to her with a smile of special needs on her face. "Why the hell do you have a plate that is filled with dessert?"
She was confused. As she should be. "Ehhhh, Ricchan? Is that a problem?"
"Duh! Of course it is! What about us? We also have to get some dessert, too, you know."
"Ritsu, this is a buffet," Mio deadpanned with flatlined eyes. "There will always be people refilling the islands with food. Look. They're doing it now." A group of men in tuxedos with white gloves were adding more entrees and desserts to the tables.
"I know that, but Yui here is eating dessert first! That's the problem, ladies and ladies."
"We always eat dessert first at our meetings too, Ritsu."
"Yeah, but that's because we have lunch in the middle of the day AND the dessert is during the tea time hour at our meetings."
"Onee-chan, are you sure you're going to finish that?" Ui asked her.
"Don't worry, I will." Yui popped a couple chocolate truffles in her mouth and shimmered. "Mmmmm, Vegas has some of the most heavenly food on the planet!"
Sawako took a forkful of the torte. "You're right. I wouldn't mind if I died here."
"Don't die," the others said.
"I was only kidding."
Ritsu was a suspicious rascal. "Riiiiight..."
"This is kind of similar to what is served at home," Tsumugi noted. "Almost identical."
"I would figure that, Mugi-sempai," Azusa replied, biting into some crab legs drenched in butter.
"I like the lamb they serve here," Nodoka said, her inner foodie blossoming like a sakura. "But it doesn't lift a middle finger to the filet mignon or tenderloin, though."
"Really? Your pickiness falls on deaf ears, Nodoka-sempai," Jun said, wolfing down her plate. "I'm gonna be full after sampling every section here, and that's good enough for me!"
"It's too bad there's not a lot of rice to go around," Yui frowned while making another run with Ui. "I mean, you'd think that there is a rice cooker and a bowl of takuan and there are bowls for us to use."
"This is a casino, not our house, onee-chan. They do things a bit differently here."
"Is that so. Go figure." Another forkful of the truffles. "Heaven..."
"I've been to a lot of buffets in my life," said Jun, "and I have never been feted to anything as over-the-top as this."
"It's Las Vegas, Jun," said Azusa. "They do this for a habit. Even going so far as to open their best buffet for us after hours."
"Yui and Ui, meanwhile, can get away with another run because of their metabolism," Ritsu snarked, "while the rest of us can only handle one go at the entire lineup. In fact, there she goes again." She noticed the airhead go for another run at the food. "Hey Yui! In several minutes we're gonna be going to our hotel, so hurry up, get what you can, eat what you can and let's go!"
"I'll be there in a bit!" Everyone else could only handle one pass at the entire lineup of edible exhibits. Yui was able to accommodate two. Actually, she could handle more than that, but time constraints prevented that from happening, sad to tell.
"Oh my God." Yui had a plateful of everything from the lineup as she set it down at her spot on the table. "Don't tell me you can finish all of that..."
"Watch." In about five minutes, she scarfed the heaping plate of food and what was remaining from her dessert platter. "No dinner needed for me; this will hold me until tomorrow."
"Holy cow! You bloody freak!"
"World and Kobayashi-san, you better watch out," Tsumugi said, "here comes Yui-chan!" Laughter and random chatter about the mechanics of slot machines and sportsbooks could be heard as the group finished eating at the Sterling Brunch.
"So where's our bus?" Nodoka asked Miss Sawako as they left the buffet room. Yui leafed her bills a little bit more before placing it back in her wallet.
"Follow me," said one of the escorts with shades with a deep voice.
"Easy, I guess," Sawako added. "Just follow the escorts."
The nine of them followed the phalanx of sharp-dressed escorts past the myriad of casino slot machines and card tables as they made their way to the bus that was waiting for them at the hotel valet near the entrance.
"Man, that was an awesome buffet!" Jun said to Mio as she sat down.
"I'll never eat anything as good as that until the next time I see that place."
"I have never eaten filet mignon in my life," Ritsu added. "I have heard of it, but I prefer to make Salisbury steak instead. I should try cooking something expensive, one of the Kobe variety, but it's pretty expensive."
"I'm sure one of the supermarkets back home will have something," Ui assured her.
"I hope you're right."
"And the truffles melt in your mouth, too," Yui said, her muscles still forming a smile of contentment.
"Yui-sempai, are you in your own happy place again?" asked Azusa.
"She is," Mugi replied. "She can't help herself. Many years will pass, and Yui-chan will still remember this buffet, and the food. And the truffles."
"Is that so..." A sweatdrop came down Azusa's head as she watched her ladyfriend continue to glimmer.
"All right everyone," Sawako said. "We are gonna be heading to our hotel, and this is one that caters to people like us. You will love it."
"Oooh, this might be a fun one," Ritsu said. "Is it Circus Circus?"
"No. It's better than that."
"MGM Grand?"
"No, try again."
"Stratosphere?"
"Hiii!" Mio cowered down in fear. Naturally, she was scared of heights.
"Apparently, Mio does not like the top of that hotel."
"Jerry here will show you where we're going," Sawako said. "Step on it, good sir."
"Yes, Miss Yamanaka." With a turn of the key, he started up the engine and the bus was on its way. "Ladies of the Hokago Tea Time Group, I will first give you a tour of the Strip, and show you the many hotels that are here for our millions of visitors before we take you to the Palms Hotel and Casino, which is off the Strip."
The bus first headed south Audrie Street, at the back of Bally's, before turning right on Harmon Avenue.
"Planet Hollywood?" Yui asked. "Interesting..."
"As you can see," Jerry said over the intercom, "newer casinos and buildings are being constructed as we speak. So do pardon our dust if it looks a bit unkempt. We like to always improve on what we do. That's the Vegas way. Now to your left is the Bellagio and to your right is Paris Las Vegas."
"Bellagio..." Tsumugi mulled. "My father used to stay there on a business trip and watched that Cirque du Soleil show."
"And speaking of Cirque du Soleil, the show 'O' is performed at the Bellagio every night. It's really great. I recommend it."
"Hey, I see some fans jumping and screaming," Ritsu said, noticing swathes of onlookers taking photos of the bus. "They know us after all."
"Cool," Azusa said. "It's like we've really made it." Hundreds and hundreds of onlookers—most of them tourists—were taking snapshots of the bus carrying the group. The speakers on board the bus were blaring out a famous song from Hokago Tea Time: Don't Say Lazy. Las Vegas was never lazy to begin with. Crazy, well, that's a more realistic definition of the scene on the Strip and Downtown.
"Now to your left," said Jerry, "is Caesars Palace, one of the more well-known hotels on the Strip. To your right is what was left of the Flamingo Hotel, made famous by Bugsy Siegel."
"Who's Bugsy Siegel?" Yui asked Miss Sawako.
"In the early days, Las Vegas was run by criminals, and one of the most famous members of the Mob was Bugsy Siegel, who created the Flamingo. A corporation here in the country now owns the Flamingo."
"So Las Vegas used to be full of bad guys?"
"Not really; there were ordinary good guys like you and me living there as well."
"Oh, so then is Las Vegas the only city in the world where good guys and bad guys can be friends?"
"It's in every city, Yui," Ritsu noted.
"Ehhhhh?" Yui was surprised.
"Don't worry, we are a great city to not only play in, but also live in, assuming you can stand the heat" said Jerry. "A lot of people are moving here because a number of houses here are cheap. But people are moving out to other places because some of the houses are expensive. As well as they can't stand the heat. Quite dry, too."
"The product of the financial crisis crippling the world," Nodoka summed up as more and more fans took photos of the bus.
"Mugi, why are you waving at them?" Mio asked.
"It's great to be a star, if only for one week," she said. "I love America. Don't you?"
"Getting too much attention can be a bad thing."
"Now to your right is the Imperial Palace," said Jerry, "one of the oldest casinos on the Strip. There is the Harrah's Las Vegas. Here is the Mirage, and their erupting volcano." Right on cue, the volcano spewed water, to the amazement of the group.
"Awesome!" Jun exclaimed.
"That looks great!" Ui added.
"Did you control that volcano?" Yui asked Jerry.
"It's all about timing. Or you can say that I have magical powers, honed over time." Laughter all around as the stereo speakers on the bus blared out "Fuwa Fuwa Time."
Ritsu shook her head. "Holy cow, more fans, and some of them are running by us."
Mio was in disbelief. "Look at this. It's literally lines of them up and down Las Vegas Boulevard taking photos! What is going on here?"
"Isn't it awesome?" asked Sawako. "You guys are Japan's hottest girl rock band, and your music has developed a fan base here in the States."
"No kidding..."
"To your left is Treasure Island, with its pirate ship, and to your right is the Venetian with its gondolas," said Jerry as he continued the tour up the Strip.
"Ooooh, Beatles!" Yui exclaimed, looking at the "Love" Cirque du Soleil ad. "They're still alive? They must all be zombies, then."
"No, John and George are dead, but the band is alive through their music," Sawako said.
"Oh." That made more sense. It was a musical tribute.
"Those are some pretty good gondolas," said Nodoka, pointing to a couple serenaded by one of the Venetian's employees.
"Doesn't compare to the real thing, but it's close," Tsumugi added.
"You've been to Venice?"
"On a number of trips during the Summer, I have."
"This place, the Venetian, reminds me of Neo-Venezia from Aria and the undines who live there," said Yui to Ui.
"You've watched the show, onee-chan?"
"One of my favorites. Alice Carroll is love."
"Ahhhh."
"Hey, look at the big saucer thingy!"
"That is part of Fashion Show Las Vegas, one of the many malls in the Las Vegas area," said Jerry "We also have the Forum Shops at Caesars, and several other hotels have their own shopping malls. Many of them are here on the Strip."
"Mugi, is your nose bleeding again?" Mio asked.
Her nostrils were plugged. "Mio-chan, look. It's so sexy!"
She blushed. An ad with girls that said: HOT BABES DIRECT TO YOU! 702-696-9696. "Sin City indeed..."
Jerry went on. "To your right are Wynn and Encore, two hotels owned by Vegas hotel magnate Steve Wynn."
"Are you sure these are regular hotels and not office buildings?" asked Yui to the driver.
"That, unfortunately, is the trend these days. Vegas is leaning towards sleek, stylish, corporate...those types of things. It's not like it was in the past. Now you see all these hotels that look like office buildings."
"The power of sea changes driving modern life," Nodoka mused.
"Nodoka Manabe, the student council president with a fetish for musing," Ritsu snarked.
"Shush, you."
"And here we have the Riviera to your right, and Circus Circus to your left," said Jerry.
"Ooooh! There's a circus inside a casino?" Yui asked, interested.
"Yes, there is."
"Wow! Can we stop there?"
"If we have time later this week, we can visit the place," Sawako said.
"She likes the circus, doesn't she?" Mio asked Ui.
"The last time we visited the circus, she was so happy to be there."
"Habits like that die hard, I guess."
"Hey, there's the unfinished hotel we saw earlier on the flight," said Jun, pointing to the blue structure with some panels sticking out.
"That is the Fontainebleau Hotel and Casino, which was supposed to open last year but did not due to lack of money for completion," said Jerry. "Hopefully someone rich will pony up the cash to complete that thing. Else, it might be imploded."
"I'll talk to Dad about considering having an interest in this hotel," Tsumugi said. "I hate seeing projects go unfinished due to lack of money."
"You go do that when we head home," Mio replied, waving it off.
"Hey Mio," Ritsu said, "take a look at that needle down there."
"Hiiii!" She cowered again.
Jerry laughed. "Scared of heights down there?"
"Mmm-hmmm..."
"That is the tallest building on the Strip and in the Valley: the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino. And to your right is the Sahara Hotel and Casino. We're going to make a left here and get on the freeway to get to your hotel, since this concludes the tour portion of the ride."
The coach made a left on Sahara Avenue before entering the Interstate 15 heading south.
"Wow, what a pyramid," Yui said, mesmerized. Luxor.
The coach then exited at West Flamingo Road before making a left on South Wynn Road, and then it stopped at the valet.
"Ladies of Hokago Tea Time, welcome to the Palms Hotel and Casino," Jerry said over the intercom. "Please be sure to have all your belongings with you as you leave the coach. Your luggage will be waiting for you in your room. It's an honor to be your driver today. Have a good week and a good concert."
"Thank you," the band said in English.
"All right guys," Ritsu said, hands on her hips, "what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
The escorts quickly whisked the group to the VIP Check-In near the gift shop. "Hello, we are the Hokago Tea Time Group," Miss Sawako said, the others with her.
"Ahhh, you are those guys," a tall man with a Texas accent replied. He was the concierge. "Welcome to the Palms. My name is Roy. A pleasure to meet you. Is everyone in your party here?"
"We are all here, yes."
"Good. Well, welcome to Las Vegas. You will staying at the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa, which is located at the very top of the Casino."
"HUGH HEFNER?" they all exclaimed except for Mugi, who they all turned to.
"Is this the room you were telling us about?" Ritsu said to her, fearful.
"Yes, is there a problem?" she whimpered.
"Do you realize how expensive this whole thing is? This is more than 3.2 million yen a night PER PERSON, Mugi! How are you gonna pay for all of us before your bank is broken?"
"The promoters will be footing most of the bill, which was reduced to just $10,000 for one week and everybody," Sawako said. "Mugi-chan's dad will pay a quarter of it."
Ritsu was counting with her fingers. "10,000 dollars, divided by nine equals 181,489 yen per person. That's still a lot, though. Oh well, as long as someone else is paying for us, we don't mind-OW!" A headbump from Mio. "Dammit! What was that for?"
"Ritsu, be grateful that we are being treated like rock stars because we are. Granted, we are high school rock stars from Japan, but rock stars nonetheless. Okay?"
She sniffled. "Yes, love. Please don't hurt me-ow, my neck!"
"Hugh Hefner is that dirty old man from Playboy, right Sawa-chan?" Yui asked. "He's such a pervert, isn't he?"
"He's a businessman and a magazine publisher, Yui-chan."
"Of Playboy magazine, right? That porn magazine, right?"
She threw her arms up in the air. "Oh, how these virgin eyes of my most airheaded student are opened to sleaze at a tender age!"
"Are you done talking with your party, ma'am?" Roy asked.
"Yes, I am."
"Here are your keys to the SkyVilla," he said. "The elevator to the SkyVilla is located at the very back. I notice that you have escorts with you, so you should be able to locate them without any issues." Miss Sawako handed each of the eight their hotel keys. "Your luggage will be waiting for you inside your room. Enjoy your stay and good luck with the concert!"
"Thank you," they all said as they were escorted to the Fantasy Tower elevators. The onlookers were taking some photos of the group out of curiosity. Some would-be paparazzi did get arrested by security and escorted in return to the police, who was there to protect the band from any would-be threats.
"So much security," Azusa said to the group. "Overwhelming."
"I think they do this all the time," Mio replied.
"They do," Nodoka added.
"Azunyan, here!" Yui placed a pair of cat ears on Azusa, to her surprise, triggering a flash of shots from onlookers. Just to get them off her back, she did a cat pose and mewed, causing one slot vet in his 70s to have a seizure.
"Yui, for the love of all things cute, don't ask for attention now," Ritsu groaned.
"Ehhhh? But Azunyan with cat ears in Vegas is made of epic win!"
She smacked her forehead. "Jeez, it's gonna be one hell of a night for all of us."
"This view is beautiful," said Azusa as the elevator went up to the Villa. "We can see the Strip from here."
Mio was captive. "Amazing." For now, her fear of heights would be taken over by a rush of adrenaline that felt so good it was criminal.
"Here we are," Tsumugi said as the others got off the elevator. She opened the door to one of the rooms in the SkyVilla.
The SkyVilla consisted of two floors, and each floor had two rooms. The Hokago Tea Time group had one of the rooms on the lower floor reserved for practice before the rehearsals and the concert, while the top floor was reserved for the girls to sleep in. Sawako would be sleeping in the other room on lower floor, while the other eight would have the top floor divided amongst themselves. For example, Yui, Mio, Ritsu and Tsumugi could take one room, while Azusa, Ui, Jun and Nodoka got the other. Actually, that was the original layout, but it was likely that some people were going to move around.
The room they first went to was where the instruments were arranged, as set up for their concerts. Mugi's Korg Triton Extreme 76-key keyboard was connected to a power outlet, but was turned off. The amplifiers were also in place. Essentially, the room resembled a recording studio, if stripped down.
"GIITA~~~~!" Yui wailed, running over to her guitar before embracing it, tears on her face. "I missed you so much!"
"There you are, Elizabeth," Mio said to her Fender Jazz bass, walking over and giving it a hug.
"Muttan," said Azusa, who went to her cherry-red Fender Mustang and gave it a kiss on the neck and an embrace. "I hope you weren't damaged on the way here. No, you're fine. Thank God."
"I like it how the hotel staff arranged our instruments before we got here," Mugi said to Ritsu.
"And not a single drum or cymbal got smashed along the way," Ritsu added, twirling one of the drumsticks she carried with her before giving a cymbal a crash. "They are miracle workers."
"I think we should practice later tonight, said Mio. "Let's go to the floor above."
"I'm gonna stay here," said Miss Sawako, "since I'm staying in the room next door."
Yui's eyes turned into circles. "Ehhh? Are you sure?"
"Hotel policy states that there can only be up to four to a room. The eight of you are going to have to decide which of you is going to go where. That also means that you may have to switch rooms. Make yourselves at home and I'll see you in a few hours!"
"What are you going to do until then?"
"I can't tell you. It's a secret."
"Don't tell me you're going to gamble!" Ritsu exclaimed, alarmed.
"That was going to be a secret, Ricchan."
"You told us to be wise with our money, Miss Sawako," Ui said to her. "Can't you do the same?"
"Fine. I'll go ahead and just kick back and relax and watch some TV. I'm bored. See you guys upstairs in a bit."
"Yay!" With a collective cheer, the others skipped upstairs.
"All right peoples, here's the dilemma," said Ritsu to the others. "We need to divide the two rooms. How should we do this?"
"I would like Mio-chan and Ricchan to be in one room," said Tsumugi, "and Azusa-chan and Yui-chan in the other."
She was suspicious. "Why that?"
"Cause I already know that there are two pairs among us that work nicely."
"I guess that would work," Mio said. "I gotta keep you in check, Ritsu. That's the only way I will stay sane during this entire trip."
"Mio...! For real?"
"Yes. For real."
"I want to be with onee-chan!" Ui said, raising her hand.
"I think it would be good if I was with Yui, too," Nodoka added.
Yui was moved, blushing madly. "You guys...I get Ui, Azunyan and Nodoka-chan in the same room? My God, I'm a lucky rocker."
"Okay, if that works, I'll be with Mio-chan and Ricchan," Tsumugi said.
"So I end up joining you guys," said Jun to Mio, Ritsu and Mugi. "Without me having a say in anything. Oh well. Having Mio-sempai in the same room as me will work."
"All right, it's settled!" Ritsu said. "Azusa, Yui, Nodoka and Ui-chan get one room, while me, Mio, Mugi and Jun-chan get the other." Yui and Jun did not have to move their suitcases, but the others had to. "So far, we are off to a flying start," she noted to herself as the others discussed random nonsense of critical relevancy, such as the press conference that would go on in the late afternoon. In the meantime, the group had some time to kill before anything else.
Ritsu turned to her ladyfriend, still unpacking her bags. "Hey Mio, can I put this hairband on?"
She shook her head. "Keep it off."
END CHAPTER 3
A/N: It looks like the days of this fic being rated T are gonna be numbered. Things will be kicked up a notch from here on out.
Once again, R x R welcome. Look forward to the next one!