TWs: Ominousness, brief gaslighting/manipulation, brief panicking/worrying/crying. Stay safe :)
"Terra?" Ganymede leaned back in his seat, "We met him yesterday."
"Honestly, I don't see the fuss about him," Europa spoke, fiddling with her straw, "He's not bad, but not as good as Gany."
Ganymede smirked, "He doesn't have enough spunk to him, that's all."
Nine hummed, "So you wouldn't have a problem handling him in a competition?"
Callisto spoke before anyone else got the chance, "We're going on a tour, not competing against each other. This isn't Altair's Got Talent."
"I'm not saying your upcoming tour is a competition, I'm simply asking whether Juno can take Terra down in one." Nine said.
"I would say so." Ganymede nodded.
"Wh-Why are you so interested in Terra?" Io asked.
"I have my reasons..." Nine uttered, "As for gaining popularity, I know a thing or two about managing a band."
"But we already have a manager?" Europa quirked an eyebrow.
"Ah, yes. Jupiter." Nine rolled his eyes, "Does he even know your names? Acknowledge you? Understand your struggles? Know who you are outside the stage?"
"Uhm..." The group eyed each other warily.
"I should be going." Nine stood up, "You can call me anytime, the offer will always be on the table."
With that, the navy-haired figure left the diner, leaving the group in silence.
Ganymede crossed his arms, "What a weirdo."
"Wh-What are we going to do?" Io looked at the others, frowning.
"We'll think of something." Europa raised a hand, brushing strands of hair out of her face.
Callisto shook her head, grunting, "I knew this was a bad idea."
"Ugh, don't even start, Callisto...!" Europa glared.
Callisto rolled her pale golden eyes, standing from her seat, "I'm going to get some ice."
"O-Ooh! B-Bring me some too!" Io perked up.
Throwing away her empty milkshake cup, Callisto went to the counter and asked the employee for two cups. Achieving the plastic containers, she filled them both with ice at the machine. She turned around, nearly ramming into someone.
"Woah-!" The person backed away, letting out a chuckle, "In a hurry, Callisto?"
The dark-skinned young adult lifted her gaze, meeting eyes hidden by sunglasses, "Triton? What are you doing here?"
"Oh, you know, I had to get gas and now I'm on drink duty." He shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck, "That's what happens when you're late to practice. So, what're you doing here?"
"Skipping practice." Callisto huffed.
"You don't sound too thrilled." Triton smirked, "I thought skipping would be exhilarating for someone like you."
"Someone like me...?" Callisto raised an eyebrow, a smile rising on her face upon seeing Triton's face become red.
"Yeah! Since you're... well, you're spec- great! You're a great person to be around, I mean." Triton cleared his throat.
"I see..." Callisto covered her mouth by raising one of the ice-filled cups over it, "Anyway, I'm here because my bandmates dragged me here."
Triton took a moment to glance around, spotting the other members of Juno a few feet away. A mischievous look glinted in his eyes, covered by his shades as he looked at Callisto, "Hey, why don't we ditch them?"
"Wh-What?" Callisto felt her cheeks burn at the question, "Are you serious?"
"I'm always serious. Besides, the drinks won't deliver themselves." Triton gestured to the two bags beside him, "I'm going to need some help."
"I thought you hated asking for help?"
"So you don't want to hang out with me?"
Callisto scoffed, "I didn't say that, just- give me a second."
"Geez, what took so long, Callisto?" Ganymede asked.
"Oh, you know... long line." Callisto lied, "Here you go, Io."
Io jumped in his seat, took the cup of ice, and chewed on the frozen cubes.
"I've got to go, I have other plans..." Callisto smiled.
"Plans? With who...?" Europa noticed the look in the taller's eyes.
"Someone," Callisto responded, tilting her head to where Triton stood.
"Ooh...~" Europa nodded, flashing an 'OK' sign.
"What was that?" Ganymede asked once Callisto walked away, squinting his eyes at his girlfriend.
"What was what?" Europa asked innocently.
"Careful, it's hot," Mercury spoke as he handed Luna a mug of hot cocoa, "Mind telling me what happened...?"
Luna was crouched on the sofa in a fetal position, his hands shaking as he held the warm mug in his grasp. He let out a small whimper, his voice wavering, "I... I don't know exactly."
Mercury sat beside him, eyeing the other with a curious gaze as he tilted his head, whispering, "What do you mean?"
Luna looked away, tears escaping his eyes and splashing in his cocoa. Taking a deep breath and swallowing hard, he finally spoke, barely meeting the other's gaze, "Can I tell you something...?"
"Go ahead! You know you can tell me anything." Mercury smiled.
"Promise not to tell anyone...?" Luna met the other's gaze through blurry, hazy eyes.
Mercury blinked, his heart hammering in his chest as he raised an eyebrow. Slowly, he nodded, "I promise."
Luna stared hard into his cup of cocoa, trying to find the strength to get the words out. He managed to stutter out, "I h-have... a-alternate identities."
Silence washed over the room like a dead weight. Luna kept his gaze down, holding the mug tightly as his pale thin fingers trembled. His heterochromatic eyes wavered on the barely drunk cocoa. Luna was sure it was cold by now, unable to feel the temperature of the cup from how hot his body felt.
"What does that mean...?" Mercury's voice cut through the silence, "S-Sorry, it's just... I don't understand."
Luna smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes, "I didn't expect you to... uhm, was there ever a time when I acted... weird?"
"You mean weirder than normal?" Mercury smirked. Luna rolled his eyes, bumping his shoulder into the other's.
"No, you dork- a time when I did something I wouldn't normally do!"
"I know what you meant; I was just teasing you." Mercury raised his hands in surrender when a thought crossed his mind, "Actually... there was one time."
"And...?"
"You're afraid of fire, right?"
Luna gave a wary look, nodding cautiously, "...Yes."
"You liked a video on TickTalk recently." Mercury got his phone out, tapped the icon, and scrolled quickly through the app, "Here."
Luna covered his eyes, "No! I do not want to see it!"
"But-"
"Mercury!"
"Fine, but you liked the video yesterday."
"Yesterday...?" Luna peered through his fingers, 'That was when Hecate was fronting- of course!'
"So, what's the deal? Your fear of fire is suddenly gone or something?"
"No, definitely not." Luna shook his head, figuring out his next words, "Let's just say I wasn't in control of my body yesterday."
"...What?" Luna sighed, taking Mercury's phone out of his hands, "Hey!"
Luna typed something into Goggle, going to the most-cited website, "Here- read this."
"Okay...?" Mercury was handed back his phone, his eyes scanning the screen. He hummed, scrolling through the article, "Ooh, this makes a lot of sense actually."
Luna let out a curious hum, "How?"
"Your music taste, choice in fashion, and eating habits change drastically... I thought it was because of your Bipolar Disorder- not that that isn't also a harmful disorder to have, it's just-"
"Mercury." Luna spoke through the other's rambling, "Shut up."
"Got it." The other gave an awry smile.
"How was that?" Pluto asked.
"I thought we did pretty good." Haumea smiled.
"Yeah! Even though we're down a person, we're still rocking this band thing!" Makemake strummed a few notes on his crimson guitar.
Eris huffed, tying her platinum hair into a ponytail, "What's the next song?"
"It should be...Victorious." Makemake read the sprawled journal pages on the floor, picking one up, "Here we are- the sheet music!"
Earth sat on the sidelines, bored out of his mind, 'Talk about a bunch of amateurs... the spotlight isn't there just for show! And they don't even have a manager!'
"Earth! There you are!" Neptune called, beaming as he made his way over to the singer, "Can I talk to you for a moment?"
"You already are, so go ahead." Earth crossed his arms, peering at the blue-haired individual.
Neptune quirked an eyebrow, unaware of the other's bitter tone, "I was wondering where we could practice outside of, y'know- here! Maybe we can go to your place or mine could work."
Earth hummed. He didn't know Neptune well enough to trust him in his house, let alone with Luna there.
"Yours." It was a simple response that seemed to please Neptune as he perked up.
"Great! I've got to tell Jupiter and Saturn, but I'll text you the details later!" Neptune waved, spinning on his heel as he walked away from Earth, "Talk to you later!~"
'Weirdo.' Earth thought, faking a smile as he waved back.
⫸ NOTE ⫷
I have nothing to add.
There are bugs in my room and I have no idea where they came from.
Save me ;-;
Join my Discord.
Comments, votes/kudos, and bookmarks are appreciated 3