Chapter 3: A Typical Talk Between High Schoolers

"W-Wait a minute!" Ai's voice trembled, "What do you mean "kouhais"? They're barely ready for preschool, aren't they?"

Tarou's face was unwavering as always, displaying an unreadable stoic expression.

"I didn't make any mistakes with my words, Ai-chan" he said, "Your children are in the midst of their first day at high school right now. They are first year high-schoolers; ergo, they are your kouhais."

It was utterly unbelievable for Ai to hear that. Despite her best attempts at trying to see if he was lying or not, she could not find a conclusive answer and she was left to take his answer as the truth, using the fact he had never lied to her as the basis for doing so.

"S-So…um…" she put her hands together, "What year is it then?"

Raising an eyebrow, Tarou glared at her before letting out an annoyed sigh.

"Can't you figure that out yourself?" he said, "I said they are first year high school students at this exact moment. And you died when they were four…so calculate their ages from that."

Smiling sheepishly, Ai used the fingers on both of her hands to hastily follow his instructions.

"Umm…eight…nine…ten…uh…eleven?…" she then nervously laughed, "Hehe…they're fifteen right now then? That means more than a decade has passed since I saw them…and they last saw me…"

Tarou's brief nod confirmed her assumptions.

"Wow…" Ai sighed and then took a heavy breath, "Just wow…"

Leaning against the railings with her arms folded close to her chest, she stared at the concrete ground between her and Tarou. Once again, she was unable to concentrate on the cacophony of the school grounds due to her senses numbing. That time around, it was due to a voluntary mental isolation to process what she had just learned.

It was too bizarre to think that so many years had passed since her death. She had originally believed that she had woken up at a timeline that started not too long after her life had ended, but with the way she had noticed how subtly the city beyond the school had changed, she had to swallow the bitter pill of reality and accept that a significant amount of time had gone by.

Clutching her skirt, her hands shook as she tried to keep all of her emotions at bay.

Quickly shaking her head, she closed her eyes tightly before asking in a low voice.

"So…for more than ten years…they…they've been without me?"

"Yes."

Taking a deep breath, Ai released the tension in her body and slowly opened her eyes.

She fell silent for a while, staring blankly at the ground. No words were exchanged between her and Tarou as the noises from the lower levels of the school grew more distinct. A tainted serenity filled the air on the rooftop as the suited man waited for the girl to find her voice.

While he still had his sights locked on her, Ai lifted her head, a passive look plastered on her face.

Gradually, a pained smile formed on her lips and she blinked a couple of times before returning the gaze. Against the bright sunlight, the corner of her eyes sparkled for a split second, the tiny hints of tears disappearing as soon as she looked at him.

"Well…if they're starting high school then it must mean they were able to live good lives without me, right?" she inquired.

Ai struggled trying to not get choked up as she felt both joy and sadness over the knowledge that her children had most likely been alive and well all through the years she couldn't be with them.

"I'm sorry for losing my composure here, Yamada-san…" she forced a giggle out, "I'm just…so happy that Ruby and Aqua have been doing okay…"

The man sighed and put his hands in his pockets.

"It's fine" he addressed her in a stern tone, "Just don't forget to be thankful for the people who took them as their own after your death."

Taking a moment to wipe her tears away, Ai gave another smile. She was starting to take note of the uncanny ability Tarou had in keeping her somewhat level-headed despite all of the harrowing situations and emotional whiplashes she had been subjected to.

"I will" she replied, finally regaining control over her emotions "I…I wonder how they look like now" she gasped, "Will I even be able to recognize them? They must've changed a lot now!"

"I doubt that'll be difficult."

"Huh?"

While Ai tried to make sense of what he meant by that statement, Tarou reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small business card.

"Before we get into that…with this reality being over ten years after your passing, you no longer have a place under your name" he told her in a firm but comforting tone, "Here is an address for you to stay in. Don't worry about anything, just take it."

"Eh? Address?"

Confused, Ai received the card and read the address written down on it in her mind.

"2 Climb-14-16 Sobidome, Giinda?"

Still holding the card, she turned to Tarou.

"Yamada-san, is this an apartment?"

"Of course it is. It's subtle, spacious and isolated from the main metropolitan area. It's perfect for you."

"For me?" Ai raised an eyebrow, "Huh? Am I living alone?" more questions began to enter her mind, "What about the rent? What about the other amenities? And you said I'm just a student as well…"

Before she could speak any further, she felt a finger touch her lips, causing her to shut her mouth instantly. A slight glance upwards showed that it was the man who had interrupted her.

"Don't worry about anything regarding your new home" he said without emotions, yet Ai found it strangely reassuring.

She nodded in response, once again putting a lot of faith in the stranger's words.

"However, before I give you the freedom to head wherever you want to…" he fixed his tie before staring right into her eyes.

It unnerved Ai as soon as the intensity in Tarou's brown-tinted pupils was noticed by her.

She had been used to the man being lax and unbothered in all of their previous interactions so for him to shift the mood into a tense one on a whim caught her by surprise. Whilst he had been nothing but great help for her, she had not expected him to reveal such a commanding side to his behaviour.

She could only imagine it was because of something important.

"Remember this at all times" he told her, "Your existence will be invalidated if you ever mention that you're Hoshino Ai to anyone. Even so much as a conscious attempt at revealing your true identity will have devastating results."

Ai felt a chill run down her spine as he spoke with a cold tone.

Though he had already informed her that she was no longer the idol she used to be, she had thought it would be alright to tell her former close accomplices about everything that happened since her death with the advent of time. However, Tarou had shot those plans right out of the sky even before she had a chance to ask for his opinion on it.

Staying silent, she cautiously nodded.

"Hoshino Ai is dead to everyone living in this reality" he added, "If you do anything to tarnish that truth, the fundamental laws will erase your very essence. Understand?" he stepped closer to her, "Under no circumstances are you allowed to do anything to reveal your identity to anyone…not even to your own children."

That last bit was a strike right to her heart.

While the prospect of simply meeting Aqua and Ruby once more, even though they had not seen her for over than a decade, was a dream come true that she would give the world for, to not have them recognize her for who she was would be devastating.

From what Tarou had firmly told her, she would not be given a choice to dictate how she'd live out her second life.

There was no avenue open for her to resume the loving relationship their little family of three used to have. In the last moments of her previous life, she had cemented that as being the most precious thing in her entire life; even more so than her accolades and her fans.

It had taken her to reach the literal end of her life to understand that and the ecstasy of a second life had given her hope to reunite their family.

She truly meant it when she said all she wanted to do was to see her children again but to have the choice of having a Hoshino family reunion ripped from her hands was so unfair.

But there was nothing she could do.

"Do…do I have to follow that?" she asked meekly, unable to raise her voice.

"If you don't follow my instructions, you won't even have a chance to see them" he replied in an emotionless tone, "It is up to your choice ultimately."

He then began circling her.

"Do you want to jeopardize your existence for just a couple of seconds of bittersweet euphoria or do you want to have as much time as possible to forge a new relationship with them?"

Ai froze in place upon being bestowed the biggest dilemma she had ever faced.

The thoughts running through her head were the most crucial she had ever had. The decision she would make after contemplating carefully on the matter would dictate her fate as well as the fate of her relationship with her children.

She was not willing to discard everything she had built up for four years, caring for her children with an unconditional love she never had for anyone else. But, on the other hand, time was all she had ever wanted; time which had been taken from her.

But then…she had an epiphany.

The smallest of smiles crept onto her face with Tarou's previous compliment of her being "smart" ringing in her head.

"I understand" she said, "I will keep my identity a secret from everyone."

With a strong conviction, she made a declaration, putting a hand to her chest.

"To them, I'm no longer Hoshino Ai. Now, I am the niece of Yamada Tarou and a member of the Yamada family" she continued, smiling all the while, "And I'm a student of this school and I am an independent idol!"

Once she finished that last point, she glanced at him and grinned.

"How's that?" she asked in a happy tone.

Tarou stared intently at her for a couple of seconds before he nodded.

"I am glad you realized a crucial point I didn't mention" he said in an impressed voice, "You can be yourself as much as you want to within reason…and I wish you all the best in that regard."

Ai was beaming with joy as she learnt that the loophole in the conditions of her existence was exploitable.

Although the road moving forward where she would don a new identity would be full of hardships and possibly, failures, the light at the end of the tunnel wasn't completely snuffed out. Making use of the time she was given would be crucial in her plans and she was prepared to slowly rebuild her relationship with Ruby and Aqua from the ground up.

With the new discovery she had made, she needn't worry about not being Hoshino Ai in their eyes as there was belief in a resolution that would bring to light her true identity without her having to risk betraying the validation of her existence.

"I'm close to telling you all you need to know so far…" Tarou spoke up once again, "…there's one more important thing I need you to know."

Diligently, Ai listened to him.

"Which is?" she asked with anticipation.

"When you told your children that you love them in your last moments, you broke down the barrier that kept your true emotions from ever emerging" he explained, "That is why, ever since you were in this new body, you've been more expressive and honest with your feelings about anything. You carried that over to this new life."

Ai was perplexed by the explanation at first but as she gave more thought to it, she knew he was correct.

There had been a distinct lack of words and expression laden with deception and lies after she had died. The ability to utilize lies to shape her image as an idol was her specialty but after she was reborn into a new body, she hadn't tapped into that side of hers…not that she had found a need to.

"That part of you isn't gone" he said, pointing to her head, "That's a switch you have simply turned off. Whether or not you feel you need that is up to you."

"Alright…" she said, somewhat sensing the end of their conversation approaching soon, "Oh! Wait!"

Her sudden exclamation led to him giving her a puzzled look.

"Hmm?"

She narrowed her eyes at him and then placed her hands on her hips.

"What are you?" she asked.

That was a question Ai had never thought about asking before.

But she was certain that Yamada Tarou wasn't human. He had been with her through the afterlife, in a different reality and now, back at her reality. He had an unmatchable grasp of what went on with the workings of the world as well as the fundamental laws that governed over everything.

At the very least, she had a hunch that he was a supernatural or extra-dimensional being but asking to confirm her suspicions wouldn't hurt.

As she looked at him, her entire being ready for another long-winded explanation or a simple shocking answer, he put a hand to his face and groaned in a disappointed manner.

"Whatever you thought I was before…" he told her before sighing, "…It's nothing relevant. I am your uncle Yamada Tarou from here on out."

"Huh?" Ai was not prepared, however, for such a dull reply, "But you knew so many things about the afterlife, different realities and-"

"And that doesn't matter anymore" he cut her off, "The validation of my own existence prevents me from elaborating on all of those. Just…try to see me as your uncle because that's the identity that was accepted by the fundamental laws."

Still confused, Ai blankly stared and nodded.

"Don't worry about anything on my side" he asserted, "I am your uncle. That is all there is to me in this reality. Understand?"

The girl swiftly found out it was fruitless trying to get the answers she wanted since Tarou's stubbornness was palpable even from just a simple glance.

"…alright…" she grumbled before a thought lifted her spirits again, "…Can I head down and search for my kids now?"

Eagerly, she awaited his response.

"Sure you can" he replied casually, "Search for your classroom later and don't forget all I've told you."

With her anticipation close to taking over her completely, Ai giddily nodded.

"I will"

Before Tarou could say anything else, Ai ran towards the stairs leading to the floor below. The girl could no longer hold in her excitement upon being given the freedom to finally speak to her children. The small matter of them being around her physical age wasn't even close to being a problem as she would have been thrilled about seeing them again even if they were senior citizens.

The suited man watched her open the door to exit the rooftop area of the school building. There was a visible intrigue glinting in his eyes as she left his side after a long conversation where he touched on everything she needed to know at the moment.

While he expected Ai to quickly run down the stairs, she stopped for some reason.

She then turned around, facing him before she bowed.

"Thank you so much, Yamada-san!" she said aloud.

The next second, she would continue on her way, disappearing down the stairs that would bring her closer and closer to her children.

Her footsteps would echo downwards until they conglomerated with the consistent cacophony of the entire school, making it impossible to pick out her trails from auditory clues alone.

Left alone to enjoy the serenity of the open space of the rooftops, Tarou glanced at the open door for a long time after Ai left before he turned his attention to the sky.

"Maybe…this will proceed better than expected."

"Ruby…Aqua…Ruby…Aqua…"

Those two names repeated in the green-haired girl's mind as she raced through the hallways, darted down the staircases and blitzed through rooms, all the while sporting a joyous smile, borne from an undying feeling of happiness as well as hope. The students of Yoto High School would either shoot looks of confusion or annoyance at the hasty girl as she ignored every single one of their presences.

The sixteen year old did not look out of place amongst all of the celebrities and budding stars who were enrolled in the school, owing to her elegant physique plus the radiant smile she sported. She seemed to exude a subtle charisma and charm that only showed a percentage of the star power she kept dormant for the time being…and for good reason.

The only thing on Ai's mind was to head down to the spacious area of the school's yard to scan every observable portion of the school to find at least one of the twins.

There was a strange gut feeling which told her that if she found one, she'd find the other soon.

Finally, after rushing through unfamiliar buildings and retracing her steps through dozens of corridors, Ai reached the school's main yard.

As she expected, there were innumerable number of students moving about the place, some sitting at the benches surrounding the fountains while others were on their way back to their classrooms. The incoherent garble of noises she had heard from the rooftops had grown significantly louder and much clearer at ground level.

After taking a moment to catch her breath, Ai instinctively turned to her left, her bright green eyes following the brick path leading to the fountain, directly behind which she had caught a glimpse of two blonde students walking by.

"Is…is that them?" she thought in between breaths.

With anticipation threatening to spill over inside of her, she blinked to focus her gaze.

Her heart beat faster and faster, even more so than when she was running. She was teetering on the edge of fainting from the smothering warmth covering her body and her rampant nerves.

A clearer look at the duo showed that it was indeed a boy and a girl.

"I-Is that really them?"

Her question would be answered as they walked in her direction.

"Oh…" she mumbled audibly, noticing the colour of their eyes.

The two blonde students would walk past her a couple of seconds later, completely ignoring the girl who had a disappointed expression on her face.

Ai sighed, realizing it would be more difficult than she expected.

"…Purple and cyan…" she thought, "They're definitely not them…"

Suddenly, the whole school area appeared to be much larger than she initially thought it was and the amount of teenagers she had to carefully look out for seemed to increase twofold.

"It'll take me the whole day, won't it?"

With the added hurdle of not knowing what Aqua and Ruby would be like as a pair of fifteen year olds, Ai had nothing but her motherly instinct to aid her in quickly locating them.

Taking in a deep breath, she steeled herself for a thorough investigation of every nook and cranny of the school. Even if she required hours to see her children's faces again, she would do so without any complaints as recollection of the countless hours spent in the void after life had infinitely increased the longing she felt for her family.

"Right! I'll do the whole yard first!"

Just as she had made that decision in her head, Ai heard someone nearby talking rather assertively.

"At least there are people I can talk to!"

Upon turning her head, she noticed a trio standing in the middle of the path which was flanked by benches.

A small gasp would leave her lips a moment later.

"…n-no…w-way!..."

Directly in her line of sight was a pink-haired, rather well-endowed young girl who was standing right beside a blonde girl with a cute face who was smiling dazzlingly. Facing them was a boy with similar blonde hair who, on the other hand, had an apprehensive look on his face.

Ai would shift her focus between the two blondes, her eyes widening in astonishment as she cupped her mouth with both of her hands. Her entire body began to tremble as the excitement from within reached a fever-pitch.

"Red…blue…"

Her motherly sonar was beeping wildly inside of her mind, signifying that there was no doubt about their identities.

One step became two and in a matter of seconds, she found herself approaching the trio while they were in the midst of a conversation.

The girl was only around a centimetre taller than her and something about her face and her expressions reminded her of herself; a resemblance that could only be shared between mother and child.

The boy seemed to be a lot more cynical, methodical and had a cool aura surrounding him; a trait reminiscent of the true side of her which she rarely showed.

All in all, they were starkly different from one another but there was one thing that they shared and that was what linked them to her...without a single shadow of a doubt.

Holding her breath, Ai feigned confidence and put on an upbeat personality, a secret act she hadn't utilized since she woke up in a different body.

Though the blonde girl was busy passionately talking about someone and it would've been rude to disrupt her monologue, she knew she couldn't stop herself even if she wanted.

And so, she committed to the move.

"Shiranui Frill is the first person that people thin-"

"Ruby! Aqua!"

Those were the first words she had said to her kids after what seemed like an eternity of separation.

It took a herculean effort to stop herself from bursting into bittersweet tears as she saw glimpses of her four year old children on the faces of their fifteen year old selves for a split second. The moment they turned to face her, it was like an absolutely bizarre dream.

Both of her grown up children looking back at her would have reduced her to an incoherent weeping mess had it not been for the façade she had weaved just before addressing them.

And since the two of them had responded to her call, there was no doubt that they were, indeed, Ruby and Aqua.

"My kids…they're…they're…"

Ai's smile widened into a glorious, love-filled grin.

"…they're STILL SO FREAKING CUTEEEEEEE!"

Seeing Ruby's puzzled face change into a friendly smile full of genuine warmth nearly stopped her heart as she couldn't believe her children would have grown into such beautiful teenagers. Even Aqua, who was yet to shift his expression, had a innate attractiveness to him…another trait he definitely inherited from her.

She could not, however, be in awe forever as she had already locked herself into a casual conversation.

"Oh! Hello! Do you know me?" Ruby asked politely.

Resisting the urge to break into a bout of boundless happiness, Ai gave a comforting smile to meet Ruby's own. Though they didn't know she was actually their mother, just being close to them was enough to fill her with love and joy.

"What brilliant manners she has! Hnggg! She's so precious!"

"I-"

"Come on, Ruby…"

Aqua's voice interrupted her before she could even say a single syllable.

"You should've paid more attention to others than focus on just one person" he said in a monotonous voice whilst crossing his arms, "If you had done so, you'd realize that one of our senpais has just approached us."

Ruby pouted in response.

Ai, on the other hand, was stunned by the mature way in which her son had spoken. He was an extraordinarily smart child in the past and as a teenager, he was still a bag full of pleasant surprises. As such, she didn't question how he was able to know that she was their senpai.

The next second, the boy bowed courteously to show his respect.

"Excuse my sister's ignorance, senpai" he followed in a reverent tone, "It is a pleasure meeting you and an honour to have you know our names."

Staring at her son incredulously, Ai was almost at a loss for words as she witnessed such princely behaviour from him. Had it not been for her "switching on" before speaking to them, she might've been flustered by the whole display.

"N-Nice to meet you, senpai" the pink-haired girl accompanying her kids spoke up.

"Oh! Almost forgot about her"

She smiled at Aqua first and then, the other girl next before turning to Ruby.

"Uhh…it's good to meet another senpai who knows us…hehe…" the blonde nervously smiled, "Are you in your second year or third year?" her face suddenly brightened, "Oooohh! Oh! Do you know loli senpai?"

Ai had to take a moment to properly register that question.

"Loli…senpai?" she muttered.

"Ruby!"

Another rough reprimand from Aqua would take her attention.

"Don't call her that in front of our other senpais. It's disrespectful" he scolded his sister.

"Hmph! You don't know if they're not calling her that too or not!" Ruby briefly stuck her tongue out in defiance.

"U-Uh…p-please don't fight…" their friend nervously tried to defuse the back and forth between the siblings.

While any other person would've felt uncomfortable seeing the brother and sister bicker and argue, Ai could not have felt any more ecstatic to learn that despite the drastic change in their appearances since the last time she saw them, they were still the same kids who would have childish spats over the most trivial of things.

In that way, it was almost like they had never left her side.

But she could not dwell on that for too long as she had barely spoken a proper sentence during their interaction.

And as a star, she couldn't let the spotlight fall somewhere else.

Clearing her throat, she faced the trio.

"Ahem!"

That was all she needed to command their full attention.

With their eyes fixed on her and her only, Ai steadied her rapidly beating heart to introduce herself as her new self to her children and their friend.

"You have no idea how delighted I am to be meeting you all. Please remember my name" she said.

Remembering the words said to her by Tarou, she prepared to give her new alias.

"My name is Yamada…"

As a niece of the man, it would, of course, make sense for her to share the same family name. Without giving much thought, she continued.

"…Ai…"

A brief pause preceded a puzzled expression on the faces of Aqua and Ruby. Their non-verbal reaction stumped Ai for a moment.

"H-Huh? What's the matter? Did I…OH SHHHIIII…I GAVE MY REAL NAME!"

"…k-ko…" Ai frantically corrected her mistake by adding another syllable.

"Eh?"

"Wha…"

"Drat! I messed up!"

Seeing the twins still perplexed by the messy changes in her vocal inflections, Ai quickly gathered herself and pretended to be simply repeating her name instead of being caught screwing up her introduction.

Before anyone could say anything, she switched on once more, closing her eyes for a moment.

She then followed it up by activating her stunning ability to fabricate a composed mask. That time though, it was to rectify the mistake she had made.

With a confident yet cute voice, she gave a proper introduction.

"I am a second year high school student and I am an independent idol…"

One more breath later, she capped it off with the identity she had to use instead of the one she wanted to use.

But it didn't matter.

As long as she was with her kids, it was fine.

"...And my name is Yamada Aiko."