"Don't worry about official documentation such as passports. We will have it all covered." Waver assures Ichigo and Miyako as he flicks the ashes of his cigarette into the ashtray before him. "Though it's just for appearance sake. We're not going to be leaving via commercial means anyway; rather, we have special transportation for this occasion."
"Feels like something from a spy movie. Never expected to get involved with something like this, even as the president for idols." Ichigo huffs from his own cigarette, and the smoke exits with his sigh.
"Damn…how long has it been since I've scouted Ai?"
"More than six years now," Miyako answers as she sips from her cup of coffee. "I don't blame you for forgetting. Learning when Ai was pregnant definitely took a few years off our lives."
Ichigo cradles his head and groans. "Don't remind me. I don't want to go through with that again. I wanted to strangle the bastard who knocked her up."
He pauses his lament and leans back into the sofa, staring at the ceiling. "But when she first learned about the kids, she changed — in a better way. Maybe that's my fault. She was a broken kid when I found her, but I saw the raw talent in her. A diamond in the rough."
Ichigo could only scoff at himself. "'Lying is fine — pretty lines are what fans want. As you continue saying, 'I love you', the lie might actually become the truth'. And who knew she became the biggest liar ever? Pushing her into this business may have done her more harm than good."
"Ichigo…" Miyako murmurs as she reaches for his hand to console him. "She knows how much you've supported her. I don't think she would have ever regretted becoming an idol. After all, it's our dream that all of us share."
Waver could only nod to that sentiment. "You heard it from Miss Hoshino, remember? She sees you as her father figure. You can have faith in yourself."
"I really do see her as my kid at this point," Ichigo admits, finding some reassurance that he had done some good in Ai's life. "As much as I want her to succeed, I don't want her to have regrets. This Ritsuka kid might be what she needs. I owed it to her this much. Even four years apart, she still holds him dear to her heart. It would be a great, sappy romantic story if it wasn't so damn disheartening — that she still doesn't trust herself yet to break out of the mask she built."
"Almost like they're two star-crossed lovers," Miyako agrees.
Waver flicks more of his ash into the tray. "It is relatable no matter where we're from — people will wear all sorts of masks to hide their true selves. But when they do finally find the person they can trust their most vulnerable self to — that's when they no longer need to wear one."
Ichigo broods for a moment as he runs some mental calculations. "The Tokyo Dome Concert is at the end of this month. B-Komachi can still practice without Ai — not ideal but doable. We can run a cover story if Ai gets asked where she is, but she has to be there for the concert. Are you sure whatever you need her to do will get done soon enough?"
"Yes, but I'm not sure how it will turn out, " Waver admits, furrowing his eyebrows. "Even if it doesn't have any results, we'll be able to get them back in no time."
"Give it to me straight now that the kids aren't here," Ichigo demands as he grounds the remains of his cigarette butt. "The whole coma thing is some cover story, right? What exactly is the issue with this Ritsuka kid?"
"In a sense, you can say he's lost." Waver pulls out his lighter, flicking off his cap with his thumb and ignites the flame. "You're in this business, you've probably seen similar cases before. When the pressure gets placed on you, people either endure it or —"
Waver snaps the cap back on, extinguishing the flame.
"They burn up and crash," Miyako finishes for him; her face pale as she recalls the amount of heartbreak she had witnessed from the back of the stage.
"And what if he was never given the luxury to even fail?" Waver continues the scenario, relighting the flame again.
Ichigo frowns, lines forming on his forehead. "From what Ai mentions, he was just a regular kid with no real talent. You see a bunch of these types heading onto the stage for the first time, and they get eaten alive."
"Painfully so. He started off at zero: no actual skills or experience compared to those around him. But not once has he complained about his circumstances. No one would've blamed him if he did. Against all odds, he did it though — a complete miracle." Waver pauses, staring at how the flame shines resolutely.
"A miracle, you say…almost like our Ai," Ichigo mumbles, "I guess birds of a kind do flock together."
Miyako laughs, but it was somber just like her smile. "Never a dull moment with this family. Really though, spending all those years thinking the ones you love are dead? I'm not sure what I'd do. Oh why do the two of them have to suffer so much? They are just kids."
The flame begins to flicker.
"Even so, kids will have to grow up one day — some more harshly than others," Waver agrees, "what he had experienced in these years, no regular human could have remained unaffected. No matter how much he continues to persevere, eventually —-"
The flame goes out; nothing remains but pale smoke.
"There won't be anything left to burn."
"Really, Ritsuka," Ai sniffs, patting her eyes dry and failing terribly. After watching the last diary entry on the laptop she borrowed from Miyako, the tears just wouldn't stop."
"You never seem to stop making me cry for you, dummy," She pouts as she crosses her arms together. "Always being the hero no matter where you are…you've saved me in so many ways now that I think about it."
She trails off, clutching her ring finger. "But even so…even you need a hero to save you, Ritsuka."
As someone who wore masks all her long, how could she not see through the one he began to forge for himself?
"I can see what Kyrielight-san means now. 'If Ritsuka Fujimaru cannot do it now, then he will have to become the one who can.' Lies are really a form of love, isn't it? My lies was to protect myself, but yours was to protect us all at the cost of yourself."
She could smile at the irony. "Really, I was telling Ruby that if she was afraid to fall, she would just fall over more, but I'm just the same as her. I was afraid to say it at that time because it would hurt me and you if it were false. But now…I definitely think I can do it now. So wait for me."
The cloudiness of her tears fades away, and the bright stars shine through again.
"Although, this reminds me," Ai murmurs, looking back at the laptop. "I should say it in person to them too, but that will have to wait when I get back. After all, B-Komachi is all of us, not just me."
Ai isn't sure what she expected, but she didn't expect a kid to greet them after their shuttle ride to the airport. Multiple of them, in fact. They were all scrambling to receive their luggage. Maybe kids are just that smart these days?
The one with the feather in his cap steps forward and salutes. "Greetings, the Hoshino family. I'll be your captain for this flight on our ship. You can call me Captain Nemo."
"...Like the character from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea?" Aqua asks, and Ai could not get enough of his adorable, baffled look. She wonders when he had the time to read all of these books as she pats the top of his head.
"Perhaps." Captain Nemo just smiles, sidestepping the question.
"Anything amiss while at dry dock, Captain?" Mashu asks as they all walk inside the ship. It was strangely larger than what it appeared on the outside.
"Nothing. Calm as the eye of the storm, really," Nemo chuckles. "Perhaps we've been too used to such dangers that moments of peace just feel strangely off.
"Whoa, it's like a sci-fi movie!" Ruby blurts out and she gawks at the sight of what appears to be a central hub with several computer monitors. There even seem to be several holograms on display.
"Welcome to the Storm Border's main hub," Nemo explains. "We'll be reaching Novum Chaldea in less than thirty minutes, so please enjoy your flight for the brief time we are together."
"Wait, isn't Chaldea in Antarctica? Thirty minutes from Japan? How fast are we going?" Aqua exclaims.
"True, if we were going the conventional means, it would definitely take longer than half an hour," Nemo winks to Aqua. "But, time is of the essence, so we will prepare you all for the Zero Sail."
"Interesting."
On his table before him, there are several camera shots of Ai Hoshino in the company of two unknown people — a man and a woman, both wearing glasses.
"The Tokyo Dome Concert is soon. At your zenith, I will take everything from you. After all, a star shines brightest before they shatter."