Disclaimer: Any songs mentioned will have a side note that credits the original artists and will not be seen by the characters.
For example:
Bohemian Rhapsody *originally by Queen
So just pretend that the songs are made by the band in this story.
"See ya tomorrow, girls," Ai Hoshino bid her fellow B-Komachi members farewell. After a long day of dance practice, Ai could finally go home to her kids again. While on the way, Ai decided to browse social media for a while. Her popularity has been steadily rising over the years and she couldn't be happier.
Just as she was about to turn the corner, she accidentally bumped into someone and heard something clattering of the floor, "Oh, I am so sorry, I should've watched where I wa-," she apologized to the person in front of her before pausing for a minute to admire his looks. 'Oh my god, he's handsome,' Said man was a head taller than her, probably around 178 cm and his blonde hair looked really messy but he somehow was able to make it look incredible. He looked to be around Ai's age, late teens or early twenties. And don't even get her started on his blue eyes that look like they'll pierce through your soul. She only wished that it wasn't autumn right now so she could know what he was packing under those baggy clothes.
"Oh, don't worry about it. Wasn't your fault that this stupid bag decided to fall apart," he held said bag in question and the front of the duffel bag was totally torn. He then knelt down to pick up the contents that fell out of the bag which were a bunch of CDs.
Curious, Ai picked up one of the CDs and saw the logo of what she assumed was a rock band. The logo consisted of a gold outer circle and a large black inner circle with a lightning bolt going through it. In the middle of it had what she assumed to be the band's name, "'Chasers'?"
"That's right. It's the name of our band. I know, I know, you must be thinking 'People still sell CDs?' and the answer is, kind of? There's still a market and it's hella cheap to make so even if we don't make much, we won't lose much either," was the man's reply.
So he was part of a band. She's never heard of Chasers before so they're probably underground. Ai though was rather amused by his laid back demeanour and by his honesty about how cutthroat the music business is, even though his band was probably struggling to stay afloat, he still has a smile on his face that seemed genuine.
As she was about to hand the CD over to him, he stopped her in her tracks, "You know what? Why don't you keep it?"
"Huh, really? I can't just take this," Ai protested however he was insisting.
"No it's okay. It's just one of our demos and we are planning on promoting our music to a broader demographic and attractive young women are part of said broader demographic so what's losing one CD going to do?" Ai blushed a little when he said this. Of course a lot of her fans think she's attractive but to hear it from someone as handsome as him was new, "Besides, even if you're not a fan of metal music, I think the music we made would make you a fan regardless," he declared.
Ai didn't know if that was confidence or arrogance but she decided to take up on his offer, "Alright Mr. "I can make anyone a fan" if you can make me a fan of your music, I'll personally attend your next concert in whatever hall you'll be performing."
"Perfect. Just so you know, we'll be performing at Shimokitazawa Shelter next Saturday at 7 P.M. You know, just in case," he said.
"Alright and who should I thank for this opportunity?" she asked him jokingly.
"Well, that would be me, Seiya Kinzoku, vocalist, composer and lyricist for the metal band, 'Chasers' at your service," he introduced himself while doing a rather flamboyant bow which caused Ai to snicker. Unfortunately for him, his bow also caused the CDs to fall on the ground again which then cause Ai to laugh out loud.
He then embarrassingly put the CDs back in the torn duffel bag, careful not to let it fall for a third time, "Let's just pretend the last part never happened. Anyway, it was good bumping into you Miss-,"
Ai stood there frozen. 'Crap, even though I'm wearing a disguise, he's close enough to notice it was me. But he didn't seem like he knew who I was and he treated me like I'm just a random girl on the street. Is he genuinely clueless about me? Throughout the conversation, I didn't see anything from him to show that he was lying. Either he really doesn't know me or he's that good of a liar. Still, it's best if I use an alias just to be safe.'
"Nice to meet you Kinzoku, my name's Akane Hoshino," Ai greeted back. Of course no one knew her last name so keeping it should be safe.
"Nice meeting you, Miss Hoshino. Well I'm off, need to meet up with the band to discuss strategy," with that, Kinzoku bid her farewell, leaving her in her lonesome. Not having any other plans, she might as well give his band a shot. If he's as good as he claims to be, then what's the harm of listening to a few of their songs.
She turned the case around to find the tracklist which only has four songs.
1. The Color Black *originally by Dayseeker
2. Fake *originally by Until I Wake
3. Guiding Light *originally by Caskets
4. Make Believe *originally by Memphis May Fire
Nothing strikes as anything outstanding although the second track caused Ai to raise an eyebrow and looked back to where Kinzoku was. Did he actually know about her secret? No that can't be, a lot of idols hide behind their identities or it could be about toxic relationships. In any case, she needed to hear it for herself to make sure.
After she finally made it back to her apartment, she heard her kids gushing about how amazing their mama is, which is true. Coincidentally, she just walked in on them speculating about who their father was. 'Hmm, maybe I should give him a call. For the kids' sakes at least,' she thought to herself. As soon as she made her presence known, Ruby ran towards her, hugging her legs, "Mama! Headpats, mama," Ruby adorably demanded.
"Of course, just let me put my purse down," as she put her purse down on the coffee table, she immediately scooped up Ruby and gave her the headpat she asked for much to the little girl's glee. Aqua meanwhile, spotted something peculiar sticking out of her purse. He pulled it out to discover a CD from some no name band.
"Uh Ai, where did you get this?" Aqua asked.
"Oh, a nice metal singer gave it to me after I bumped into him. He seemed nice so I decided I'll listen to his songs later," Ai said nonchalantly while Aqua was full on panic mode.
"What!? Are you sure he wasn't some deranged fan looking to attack you!? What if he planted this CD with acid or something!?" Aqua questioned.
"Calm down, Aqua. I'm sure you're overthinking things. I don't think he has any reason to hurt me considering he has no idea who I was," Ai reasoned.
"WHAT!? How can he not know who you are? He should be grovelling at your feet for bumping into you and to have you hear his stupid music," Ruby ranted.
"Now, now Ruby. You shouldn't judge something before you give it a try. And Aqua, you're overreacting, I'm sure this is just a regular demo made by an underground metal band. If it were anything malicious, then it's probably the most convoluted plan ever made. I bumped into him by accident and he had dozens of these," then Ai immediately opened the casing to reveal a regular CD, "See, nothing dangerous here."
Aqua kept quiet but still suspicious of this "metal singer's" motives. Ruby meanwhile was eager to insult his songs for disrespecting mama like that. As Ai put the CD in the player, all three of them braced themselves for what was to come. This was an unknown metal band so the chances that they'll be terrible are high.
(play The Color Black by Dayseeker)
All of that preparation proved fruitless as they were never prepared for what they were about to hear. All worries that it might be awful was wiped away immediately after they heard the first verse. When they heard the singer's soft but angry singing voice, they were hooked. Even though they were a bit surprised at the sudden change of his voice from soft to harsh, it was still really good.
Ruby was resistant to the song at first but would soon start to enjoy herself, headbanging to the beat. Aqua was reeled in by the vocalist's performance. How could someone sound like an angel but also like a devil at the same time. Ai meanwhile, was entranced on the lyrics. The lyrics resonated with her so much because it described her mother almost perfectly.
Was Aqua right? Was this an attack on her? No can't be, there are plenty of abusive people besides her mother. It just had to be a coincidence right? Very few people know about her mother, let alone some guy she met on the street. So with that she decided to just enjoy the song because it's still a really good song. Far better than any of them was expecting.
(stop playing The Color Black by Dayseeker)
"Wow! Uh, I mean he was good and all but he still couldn't beat mama if you two go head to head," Ruby corrected herself, not wanting to admit that the song was better than anything B-Komachi ever produced.
'Even when the evidence is in front of you, you still cling on to Ai. Not that I could blame her. Still, how is this guy an unknown? His range is outstanding. The band should be a household name based on this song alone if I had any say in the industry,' Aqua said internally.
"Now, now. There are still three more songs and hopefully they'll be just as good as the first one," Ai then let the CD player to play the rest of the songs. Just like the first song, they were all excellent and the kids immensely enjoyed it, especially Aqua. However, for Ai, it stung a little as the latter three songs had the theme of lies especially the second one, it sounded like it was targeting her specifically. But despite all that, all four songs were incredible and she was tempted to attend the concert Kinzoku mentioned.
"Uhm, mama?" she was broken out of her thoughts by Ruby.
"Yes, dear. What is it?" Ai asked.
"Uhm, can you play the songs again?" Ruby asked.
Ai then looked at Aqua for his opinion, "I mean I don't mind. All the songs were really good after all."
"Alright, we'll play it again. I wouldn't mind listening to it again myself," she said to them. Of course she was a bit disappointed to know that they have a new favourite singer, but she'll work her ass off to reclaim her throne. Even though it was unlikely that B-Komachi will ever make music as impactful as the ones she heard today, she was willing to try.
(the next day)
Ichigo and Miyako Saitou were making their way to see Ai and her kids to check up on them. Ichigo then knocked on the door to Ai's place, "Ai! It's Ichigo and Miyako," Ichigo called out. From behind the door, they could hear Ai's muffled voice, "Coming!"
The door opened with Ai being her usual self, "Hey, come in," with Ai's invitation the married couple entered, "So what's the occasion?"
"What else? To celebrate your new digs," Ichigo said while holding a bottle of Moriizo.
"Mama!" before Ai could even respond, Ruby interrupted them, "Are you gonna talk to them about Chasers?"
"Chasers? /Chasers?" the Saitous asked simultaneously.
"Oh, they're an underground metal band. Funnily enough, I bumped into their vocalist yesterday and he dropped his CDs. When I tried to hand him back a CD, he refused saying that giving one to me could help promote his band," Ai recounted yesterday's events.
However, the Saitous weren't exactly pleased with how Ai handled the situation, "What!? Did you wear a disguise that day? Did he find out who you were? Is that why he thinks that giving you his third rate music would give them exposure?" Ichigo said while gripping her shoulders and shaking her.
"Honey, you're making her dizzy," Miyako informed him. Causing him to let go of Ai's shoulders.
"Sorry about that, Ai," Ichigo apologized.
"No worries. Now regarding your questions. First of all, I did wear a disguise yesterday but we were basically face to face so he could see my face regardless. Second, he didn't seem to recognize who I was and it looked like he was honest about it. Third, he said he wanted to promote the band to a wider demographic," Ai finished her explanation.
"And you're sure he was being honest with what he said," Miyako butted in.
"Positive. He didn't look like he even knows how to lie. He was pretty open that his band wasn't doing all that well," Ai explained.
"Alright, so why do you want me to hear even a second of his music?" Ichigo asked suspiciously.
"Let me guess, he was cute and you want us to sign him so you could see more of him," Miyako guessed.
Ai stayed quiet for a while with a small blush on her face, "W-Well, he's not exactly cute but more, drop dead handsome," Ai stammered a response.
"Heh, called it," Miyako snorted.
"Regardless of whether he's actually attractive or not, it's undeniable that he makes some amazing music so it would be a waste for someone of his talents to languish in the underground scene," Aqua made his presence known and shared his two cents.
"Yeah what Aqua said, the guy's music is really good. At least listen to one of his songs," Ruby said while giving Ichigo and Miyako the puppy eyes.
It didn't take long for the married couple to give in, "Oh fine, this better be worth it," with that, Ai lead them to the leaving room and they all sat on the couch. Once the music started playing, the two were already hooked and eventually they started headbanging without them realizing.
Once the final song ended, Ai started talking, "Sooo? What did I tell you?"
"Oh my goodness. When you said this was a metal band, I expected it to be nothing more than a guy screaming. The screaming's there of course but this was much better than I expected," Miyako responded, still in disbelief over what she just heard.
"Holy hell! That was phenomenal. Ai what did you say the guy's name was?" Ichigo asked, already thinking of scouting him which pleased Ai and the twins.
"His name's Seiya Kinzoku. Said he's the vocalist, composer and lyricist of the band," Ai answered.
"So he not only sang these songs, but he made them as well? Hmm sounds good to be true," Ichigo mused. He picked up the CD casing to see if there are any contact information on them, "Alright got it."
"Wait, I remember he said they'll be performing at Shimokitazawa Shelter next Saturday. Maybe we can go to the performance that day and see it for ourselves," Ai reasoned.
"We?" Ichigo asked.
"Well, that's the day before B-Komachi's dome performance and you gave us the day off that day. So why not spend the day going to their performance? Besides, the twins loved their songs and would love to go. Isn't that right?" Ai reasoned.
"Yeah, I wanna see them live," Ruby said excitedly.
"I'm okay with it," Aqua said calmly but inside he was pretty excited with the prospect.
"Absolutely not. They might be a relatively unknown band but considering their quality, it wouldn't surprise me if they have a small core group of loyal fans that will attend whatever concert they'll be performing and they will more likely recognize you, unlike their clueless vocalist," Ichigo rejected the proposal.
Ai looked down in disappointment, something Miyako noticed, "Ai, why do you want to see them so badly. Don't tell me, do you have a crush on this Kinzoku guy?" Miyako asked.
At the mention of a possible crush caused her to blush profusely, what Ruby said next made things worse, "Is he gonna be our papa? I wouldn't mind if he sang me to sleep every night."
Aqua meanwhile just sweatdropped at his twin for boldly proclaiming someone she hasn't even seen yet as her father.
"No! No! That's not it. It's just-," Ai took a breath to compose herself, "It's just, I want to meet new people. I have you two looking out for me and I have my beautiful babies as well and I'm grateful for that," she pointed to the Saitous and the twins respectively, "But when I talked to him yesterday, it just felt natural. He didn't treat me like my fans treated me. He didn't even know who I was and treated me like a normal person, and I miss that. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I feel lonely and I want to make more friends outside of you guys," she said, not realizing that tears were starting to fall down her cheek.
Ichigo wanted to say something. He wanted to bring up her ex to hopefully quash any feelings she had for this guy but he knew that would make things worse especially in front of the kids.
Meanwhile, said kids were having a dilemma of their own. Did they inadvertently cause Ai to feel so alone? To not have any meaningful relationships?
Suddenly, they were brought out of their thoughts by Miyako, "Alright, you and the kids can come," this caught them off guard, "But remember, wear a disguise and the kids are mine if anyone asked."
Ai beamed at Miyako's acceptance but Ichigo was still hesitant, "Honey, are you sure about this?"
"Look at her, Ichigo. I know you want to protect her but we can't keep her locked up here," Miyako then turned her attention towards Ai, "And you, just because we're giving you a bit more freedom, doesn't mean you should be careless. If you think anyone and I mean anyone is following you, call us immediately and only open the door for either me or Ichigo. Do you understand?"
Ai then grabbed Miyako for a hug while also thanking her profusely.
"Well, we have an underground performance on Saturday and a dome concert on Sunday. This should be an interesting weekend," Aqua said to himself. Little did he know that what he said will turn out to be more true than he expected.
AN:
Yes, this is basically a 'Save Ai' fic. But mostly, this is just my fantasy of metal music getting the recognition it deserved.
I apologize if it seemed like I'm glorifying metal music while undermining idol music. I am quite biased towards the former so that may happen from time to time. And the songs included here are some of the songs that could hit Ai the most
Secondly, I have no idea where I'm going with this fic, like my other stories, Tanya Lannister and Gloria's Bloodtrail, I wrote this on a whim and currently has no direction whatsoever. Especially since I've only watched the first episode of Oshi no Ko.
Lastly, I want to talk about my OC. Yes, I named him by random and if you're curious about his appearance. Just imagine him looking like the wrestler Hook from AEW.
I think that's all from me so read and review and I hope I'll see you all later.
Edit 1/6/2023: So, change of plans. Many thanks to SentinalSlice for giving me this idea. Originally, I planned on Ai talking to Seiya would cause her to miss the twins talking about her ex, making the stalker a non-factor for the time being. He gave me a different idea and I decided that it was better than mine so I'll be using his idea for the next chapter. Whenever that will be. I still need to update Tanya Lannister and boy is that story challenging.