So... hisashiburi, lol. I wonder if I lost all my readers, though I'm glad to see a few still around at least. ^^ Recent events have just made me want to continue this story again... I want to thank from the bottom of my heart everyone who commented after the last chapter. I won't go through them one by one since it's been so long, but know that it's because of you that I'm able to even continue now.
I'm sure after so long there's going to be some change in the feel, though I'm trying to keep it the Berry Beautiful you guys have always loved. I can't believe it's been 38 chapters... Anyway, onward.
What's in store next for our favorite Berryz heroines?
Chapter 38“You’ve been doing a better job lately, Natsuyaki-san,” Tsunku said as he walked back around his desk after greeting her into his office. “Your school life is secret, and no one is imagining you as perhaps a future entrant into Tokyo University.”
“You know I’d rather go to a performing arts school anyway,” Miyabi said firmly in response. “So it’s not hard to keep that ‘illusion’ up. But thank you for your praise,” she finished with a wry grin. The magic she had still been teaching herself, albeit quietly and uninterruptedly over the months since her run-in with Kuromi and that woman, also lent her an eccentric disposition, which she supposed supported her spacy and calm attitude.
Tsunku smiled faintly himself in response. “Yes, well,” he began, “All that’s well and good of course, but there are still matters to take care in.” He suddenly fixed her with a hard gaze. “Those pictures and video from the internet are quite incriminating.”
Miyabi felt her face flush at the subject coming up again, although it was nothing she wasn’t used to lately. “I told you and everyone else in this building before, that wasn’t—” He didn’t let her finish.
“Oh I believe you well enough,” he said, holding up a hand. “Although there are those that aren’t so convinced, but that’s not the point. The point is that you did allow yourself to be photographed in situations that could be construed into something potentially damaging to your career. You talk about going to a performing arts school, so apparently you’re serious about it, and I’m sure would not want something so stupid to ruin your aspirations.”
Miyabi’s temper kept rising from his interruption to his calling her ‘stupid’, and she knew she had to start to be careful with what she said. “You know as well as we do that we can’t pick and choose the people who surround us twenty-four hours a day. Every one of them is bound to have some kind of camera, so it’s just a matter of when someone uses it. That’s been a problem for everyone lately, hasn’t it?”
“Yes, yes,” Tsunku agreed, sitting down in his desk. “But most of them are well-established into their careers, whereas you are still barely starting out, and it would be unfortunate if something happened to hurt your future chances.” Miyabi was about to open her mouth again before he went on, “But again, this works well into your image. Who would think anything more of you than another witless teenage celebrity who does unimaginably stupid things sometimes?”
Miyabi clenched her fists at her producer’s language still, but now began to realize he was not meaning his words as insults. “So, I won’t be punished?” she asked, almost through gritted teeth.
“Unfortunately,” Tsunku replied with a dramatic sigh as he looked down at some papers on his desk. “We must take some action to appease those higher up.” Miyabi’s breath caught at that. Despite the very real potential of going to a place like Tokyo University and having the kind of career other students only dreamed of, that wasn’t the kind of career
she wanted. She wanted to do what she enjoys… to sing. If this punishment were to damage that possibility…
“Am I to have a sudden ‘graduation’, then?” she asked, hoping she kept at least some of the concern out of her voice.
Tsunku looked up at her, and she noticed his eyes slightly wide. “Oh dear me, no,” he said. “This is nowhere that serious, even with those that don’t believe you, and plus, you’re far too valuable to the future of the Project.”
Suddenly she felt her hopes buoyed by the man’s words, as well as a bit flattered by his comment about the future.
“No, we’re going to do something a bit more subtle. I’m afraid you still may not enjoy it, but hopefully you’ll accept it as necessary and maybe even take the advice to be more careful tighter to your heart.”
He stared at her a moment as if studying her reaction, but she was getting tired of the anticipation. “So…?”
“In order to push forward our plans with Buono, we want to present Tsugunaga-san as more of a focal point since she is the oldest and who people most expect is and will be leader. To that effect, from now on she’ll start to be in the center for more of the shoots and performances.”
That was hardly a surprise to Miyabi. Her personal feelings aside, she’d always wondered how she managed to be the center girl for their first few singles. Despite her own ideas of herself, she knew Airin was the most talented, if still a bit young, and Momo was her senior. Taking the traditional measures into consideration, she was really the least exceptional of the three of them.
“Also, though to a lesser extent, you’ll feel a bit of a shorter shrift in upcoming Berryz media,” Tsunku continued. “We want to begin to push Sugaya-san more as an individual artist, so I’m afraid she’ll be taking up most of the solo work, but I assure you, you’ll still be a face of the group.”
Miyabi almost wanted to bark a laugh at that. It really was the rise of the “next generation”. First Airi, and now they wanted to push Risako more as well. Then again, she couldn’t complain too much in that respect. After all, Risako’s happiness and career was very important to her as well, as both her best friend and girlfriend.
“I can’t say I’m thrilled, Tsunku-san,” Miyabi said in meek acceptance, “But it sounds like my hopes will still be secure, so I thank you for that.”
“Of course, Natsuyaki-san,” Tsunku replied, now smiling genuinely at her. “And please, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to come to me.”
Not wishing to spend any longer in the man’s office, Miyabi just bowed and made her way out the door. As she strolled slowly down the hall in thought and turned toward the elevator, she was suddenly attacked and driven back toward the wall.
“Miya!” Risako said in a cheerful but almost frantic voice, holding her against the wall as she searched her eyes. “How’d it go? Tsunku-san called me in earlier, and so I was afraid of what he might want to talk to you about…”
“It’s… fine, Rii-chan,” Miyabi replied neutrally. Glancing to either side to see that the hall was clear around them, she leaned forward to give her young girlfriend a light peck on the lips before taking her hand and pulling her toward the elevator. As they walked, she gave the girl a sidelong glance. “I hear congratulations are in order for you, though,” she commented in a more colorful voice.
She saw Risako’s face blush slightly, but the girl just protested, “Congratulations for what?”
Miyabi squeezed her hand. “There’s no need to be modest, so don’t start now,” she joked. “I hear they’re going to start pushing you solo more. That’s great. I bet that means you’ll be getting that solo song we hear is going to be on the next album.”
“That’s still a ways away yet,” Risako said dismissively, still from within her blush. “I wouldn’t expect anything so soon.”
“Oh?” Miyabi asked with a raised eyebrow as they reached the elevator, but instead of pushing the button they just turned toward each other. “Then what did Tsunku-san call you into his office for earlier?”
“Um…” the girl responded, apparently caught offguard by Miyabi’s shrewedness. “Well…” she continued to stammer, before jabbing Miyabi playfully in the shoulder. “Hey! Stop being so smart!” she pouted.
At seeing her cutest feature shine from her face, Miyabi couldn’t help herself and leaned forward again to kiss those pouting lips. This time Risako wrapped her arms around her and pulled her closer, the kiss deepening until the other girl pulled breathlessly away to look frantically around.
“Is something wrong?” Miyabi smirked, licking her moistened lips.
“You know we shouldn’t be making out in the hallways like this!” Risako scolded. Miyabi’s smirk didn’t go away. “Somebody could walk by any second!”
“Isn’t that danger what it’s all about?” Miyabi breathed in a low voice. “You know I’m the rebel.”
“Yes, but I’m not…” Risako said, beginning to pout again, but this time she raised a finger to Miyabi’s lips to stop her from leaning in for another kiss. “I’m the shy princess.” Then the pout faded, and once again the young girl peered into the older’s eyes. “Is everything really all right? You’re acting…” She blushed. “Different…”
Miyabi sighed. She was going to have to tell her girlfriend sooner or later, so she supposed she might as well get it over with. “I’m to be punished,” she said simply.
“Punished?” Risako gasped. “You’re not…”
“Nothing serious,” Miyabi assured her quickly. “Just maybe a few less lines here and there to make me a bit less visible and I suppose prone to criticism. Temporarily, I’m sure.”
Risako’s hand slipped past her ear to stroke her long hair gently. “Don’t act like that,” she said quietly. “I know it’s important to you to stand out.”
Miyabi just shrugged. “What’s the big deal, really?” she asked offhandedly. “Maa-chan and Chii have never been in the front, and Chii’s still the happiest person I know. I’ll live I’m sure. After all, it could be worse.”
This time she saw a different spark in Risako’s eyes – one of sudden anger. “It’s unfair for them to do this to you!” she complained. “It wasn’t your fault! It’s even completely obvious!”
“At least you’re going to be getting something good out of it,” Miyabi said insistently. “Seeing you succeed will make me happy.”
Risako seemed to ignore her, and slammed a hand in her fist. “We should just tell them about the two of us,” she said, her eyes focused on a faraway place. “Tell the whole world! Then they’d know for sure you didn’t do anything wrong!”
Miyabi was now starting to get worried. She clutched the girl’s shoulders tightly, and their eyes connected once again. “Whoa,” she said warningly. “You know we don’t want that. All they have with this is speculation, but if we go on air to tell everyone we’ve been dating for the past six months they’re going to have far more than rumor to go by. Besides, do you want people to be following us with cameras even more eagerly than they are now?”
“But Miya,” Risako whined, “It’s not right for them to do this to you. Besides, knowing our fans, they’d be excited to hear about the two of us being together.” Her mouth turned up into a look of slight disdain at her words, despite her implication of it being a good thing.
“Think, Risako,” Miyabi said in a firm voice again. “Your career is just starting to really take off. Mine is far from being in shambles. We don’t want to do anything that’ll threaten it.”
The girl looked back into her eyes again, but this time in anxiety. “I hate always having to hide this from everyone. I want the world to know I love you, and about how happy we are together.”
Miyabi couldn’t help herself but feel softened by Risako’s words. “The important people do know, don’t they?” she asked. “Everyone in Berryz… our friends from home. Can’t we just be like normal girls in something like this?”
“But we’re not normal,” Risako dissented, lowering her eyes again. “We’re celebrities. Apart from that, everyone thinks we’re too young, especially me. They don’t understand…”
“
We understand,” Miyabi said, lifting her girlfriend’s chin with a finger. “That’s what’s important.”
Risako just sighed, and punched the ‘down’ button on the elevator. “I’m going to go work out a bit before our turn at rehearsal. Come with me?” she asked with a pleading look.
Instead of a response, Miyabi leaned in to kiss her lightly, leaving the girl’s chin tilted slightly, and the girl herself wanting more. “Maybe in a while,” she responded. “There’s somewhere I want to stop by first.”
Risako wrapped both her hands around one of Miyabi’s wrists. “Then can I go with you there? I just want to be wherever you are.”
“No,” Miyabi said, pulling the girl’s fingers away gently with her other hand. “You go ahead. I won’t be long.”
The elevator dinged and opened, two office ladies inside peering out at the two idols. Risako gave her one last longing look before stepping inside and managing to don a smile. “Okay,” she said, raising a hand to wave. “See you soon then!” Then the elevator door closed.
Brushing her hair behind her ears with her fingers, Miyabi turned in slight frustration and headed toward the stairs. Where she was headed was only a couple floors down, so she didn’t want to bother with the elevator, not to mention it gave a better good-bye to Risako than it would have if it had to have been in front of the office ladies sharing the elevator.
Finding the staircase, she scaled them quickly down to the floor that held one of the studios, and she hurried toward it. The Berryz weren’t the only ones who were having rehearsals today, as Morning Musume and a new group also were present. Then again, most of the new group were from either Berryz or Morning Musume.
Finding the entrance, she shuffled inside, bowing and smiling to a few staff members who nodded back with smiles of their own before heading slowly through the darkened room toward the stage, where she began to watch quietly from the shadows. The five members of the group that was to support Morning Musume’s new musical were rehearsing the dance for their debut song. Miyabi stared at their sharp movements, unsure if she’d ever seen something so…
cool… before.
Everyone had of course heard a few weeks ago when it was first announced that their Captain was going to be joining some of the finest from the other Wonderful Hearts for this special unit, and Miyabi had been waiting for today when they were scheduled to start shooting to see what it was all about.
All the girls were dressed in short black skirts with tight black tops, with Takahashi-san and Tanaka-san, the Morning Musume representatives, wearing a red blouse over the tops, and the younger members – Yajima-san from C-ute, Yuukarin, one of the Eggs, and Saki – red vests to allow the sparkling star on their shirt to shine.
Miyabi felt almost hypnotized watching the talented girls’ dance movements, but she found a hard time trying to keep her eyes off Saki, who moved with her own exceptional precision and flexibility that she remembered quite well. It didn’t help that the girl was wearing a black fedora along with Takahashi-san, completing the look.
While watching and beginning to move with the girls who danced, she didn’t even notice when two other girls walked up beside her, and started in surprise when one tapped her shoulder. Stifling a blush for some reason, she looked quickly into the eyes of a smiling Chinami, arm-in-arm with Yurina.
“Decided to come see the show too, huh?” the energetic girl asked. She glanced over toward the dancers, and the smile faded slightly. “It sure puts our ‘monkey dance’ to shame, doesn’t it? I don’t know
how Captain is going to readjust for our rehearsal later.”
Miyabi turned to join the others in watching the rehearsal again. “At least it’s good she’s doing this first,” she commented. “All she has to do for our rehearsal is let loose and act crazy. Focusing on something like this after
that would be the problem.”
“Hmm,” Chinami responded. “I suppose you’re right.”
“Where’s Rii-chan?” Yurina asked, looking around as if she was expecting to find her. The two had always been good friends, and Miyabi was happy to hear that they had been hanging out quite a bit lately as well. It was only fitting to pair with the time she spent with Chinami. Perhaps things were more relaxed among the four of them now that they were all involved in long-lasting relationships.
Somehow Chinami and Yurina had been able to keep theirs more on the down-low though, as even some staff members knew of Miyabi and Risako. Although, the long-heralded
ebiru duo she supposed just naturally drew more attention. Attention was something Miyabi liked quite a bit, but not especially this kind.
“She went down to the gym. I figured she wouldn’t be as interested in watching this shoot, so decided to just come alone.”
“I see,” Yurina said, turning her attention back to the performers, but Chinami glanced out of the corner of her eye toward Miyabi.
“She looks pretty awesome up there, doesn’t she?” the girl asked. “A far cry from even a couple years ago. She’s really come a long way.”
“As we all have,” Miyabi said solemnly. “As we all have…”
Suddenly, watching Saki swagger to the front to duet with Yajima-san while looking like she was having so much fun while working so hard, Miyabi wondered what she was really doing there.
“Well, I think I’m gonna go join Risako now,” she said quickly, and turned to leave.
“So soon?” Chinami asked in surprise. “Surely they’ll be done soon. Wouldn’t you like to talk to Captain and maybe the others? Don’t get a chance to see them all like this often.”
“Nah, it’s all right,” Miyabi assured her. “I bet Rii-chan’s getting lonely down there anyway. She’ll like the company. And besides, that’s my duty anyway, isn’t it?” she finished with a grin, glancing between the two girls arm-in-arm themselves.
That caused the two of them to glance at each other with smiles of their own, and Yurina replied, “You’re right. Chii would do well to remember that too,” she chided, before receiving a playful bump in return.
Miyabi just smiled and waved weakly as she headed back out the studio door, bowing to and thanking the staff. As she headed toward the elevator, she thought about the past six months or so she and Risako had been together. It had started wonderfully, with the cliché “dream come true”, and as time passed she found there wasn’t much better than being with your best friend. Risako adored her, perhaps in that child princess-like way she still had, and Miyabi in a way felt the responsible adult of the pair as Risako would do crazy things just for the sake of play when they were out together.
She also thought that Momoko would have approved of their relationship, and she did at first, but for some strange reason as time went on the older girl became distant again, as if the two of them were ever close to begin with. When they were Buono, they spent the most time together, but still Miyabi found herself hanging out with Airi more and more, rediscovering her fondness for the girl, perhaps partly due to her similar age and attitude as Risako.
When she pushed the button for the elevator, she felt her mood lightened. Her best friend was her girlfriend, and had proven to be very loyal and loving for over half a year now, the girl she still didn’t get along with well was not paying her as much attention anyway, and despite her “punishment”, between Buono and Berryz her career had never been better, for all of Tokyo University. She smiled. Surely she couldn’t be happier, and to celebrate she even thought about doing a little magic to surprise someone in the hall.
…
After the final “CUT!” called by the director, the girls were allowed a break, and Saki took off her hat to sweep her sweat-soaked hair back. She didn’t remember the last time she’d enjoyed a rehearsal so much.
“You’re doing so awesome, Saki-chan!” Takahashi-san complimented her with sparkling eyes, the older Morning Musume leader dealing with layers of sweat of her own. “You should keep your hat on though. Your hair’s hopeless if you have it off.” Saki sighed and smiled, deciding to take the advice.
“You know, I’m envious of you,” Tanaka-san told her while looking at her through her eyelashes like the girl tended to do. “I wish I had the body to dance like that,” she laughed.
“That’s ridiculous,” Saki responded. “You’re great, Tanaka-san!”
As the girl smiled in response, Maimi came up and grabbed her arm. “Hey, you wanna run and get an Aquarius quickly? I’ll treat.”
“I’ll catch up with you,” Saki responded, patting the girl’s arm and glancing over to three shadowy figures watching from behind the lights.
“All right,” Maimi said. “Don’t be too long though! We only have fifteen minutes!”
After the girl left her, she smiled at a shy Yuuka as she walked over to her spectators, who whistled when they saw her strut up in her hat. “Lookin’ good there, Captain!” Chinami beamed. “You’ve even made a fan out of Tanakacchi. And don’t worry about Ai-chan. She’s a tough nut to crack.”
“Don’t I know that,” Saki grinned, and her eyes swept beyond them toward the hall before she turned them on on the shortest girl there. She swore someone else had been watching too…
Momoko was smiling as wide as ever, and looked ready to bounce up into the ceiling. “Sugoi, Captain!” she chirped, and Saki couldn’t help but smile at her contagious enthusiasm. “They may call you a King, but there you really were the Dancing Queen!” They all laughed at the reference to the Western musical that would be coming to Japan before long. Saki really was looking forward to it, and so felt humbly flattered and amused by the comparison.
“Momo…” Yurina said, appearing to be holding back laughter. “That was lame…” She couldn’t hold back any longer, and the three of them all burst out at the peach girl’s expense.
“Iya da…” Momo whined with a pout, before grabbing Saki’s arm. “If I heard correctly, Yajima-san invited you to have an energy drink, right? Mind if I come along?” As if Saki had a choice, with the other girl actually dragging
her in that direction.
Still, she went along willingly, waving to Chinami and Yurina as they started to head out. However, her eyes lingered on the door to the hallway once again. She knew another girl had come, and by herself even, only to watch for a while and leave before Saki had the chance to catch her. She didn’t know why, but after so long of being business-like with one another something stirred inside her again.
You came… she thought, her wistful smile soon all that was left of her in the studio as her best friend dragged her off to her breakroom doom.
Topic: Berry Beautiful [Volume 2] (Read 113432 times)