Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

For as long as the girl known as Hoshino Ai had remembered, she had never known what it meant to love.

Maybe she would have felt it, if her biological mother had come back for her.

For as long as the idol known as ‘Ai’ had remembered, she had never known what it meant to love.

All she did was spout lies from her mouth, in hopes that those lies would become the truth.

Then there was a boy, shorter than average yet with a charm that captivated even her. Ai then questioned, ‘Was this love or simple attraction?’

She didn’t know.

Then she was pregnant, her manager berating her as they announced her hiatus due to apparent health reasons. As she held her slightly larger belly, she couldn’t but wonder, ‘Would the fans still love me if they knew about this?’

She knew that the answer was a ‘No’.

Then a doctor from the countryside, a man known as Doctor Goro, a fan of hers. For twenty weeks they had spent time together, a warm feeling had bubbled in her heart. Did she love him then? As a friend, or simply just a doctor that happened to be a fan of hers?

She never got the answer to that.

The doctor that had promised to help her deliver her twins had simply disappeared. She waited for a day or two at the hospital after childbirth, but the man never came. Before a feeling of sadness seeped into her heart, the thought of her children simply washed all of that away.

Perhaps that doctor simply couldn’t accept that the idol he supported got pregnant.

Then after one year of a hiatus, she was back in B-Komachi as the center. She didn’t really know what to feel but after a long day, the sight of her children sleeping simply made her heart warm up. She once again questioned, ‘Do I love them?’

She didn’t know the answer to that.

For a few long years after that, that question always lingered in her heart. Did she love Aqua and Ruby? She wanted to know the answer to that, to say it out loud, but the thought scared her. What if she was like her mother? What if she had said those three magic words to her children, the ones she always said to her fans?

 What if she realized that those words were lies?

She didn’t want to know the answer to that.

Then she was finally there, her manager Ichigo Saitou was exhilarated. Ai had finally become a rising star, not only in the idol circle but outside of it as well. More importantly, she finally could perform at a dome. It was important, apparently. Everyone thought of it as such, so it must be important. Even her children seemed happy at that, her little geniuses. Aqua was a brilliant actor, talking like an adult, and reading books that made her cross-eyed. Ruby was a brilliant dancer, always shining so brightly with confidence, though she acted like those otakus at times... But still, was she happy?

Everyone was, so she must be as well.

Her kids were discussing their father at one point, as they eventually came to a weird conclusion. Well, it was Ruby who had assumed that they were born without having a father, she couldn’t help but be worried that both would believe that... So, she called her ex, wondering if he could meet the kids. They were mature for their age, after all, they would understand their parents’ situation. 

And so, a few hours before her dome performance, the doorbell to her apartment rang. Admittedly, Ai was excited by the prospect of the kids meeting their father. He may only be an old flame at this point, but he was—

There was a bouquet of flowers and a familiar man.

...

It was not Hi—

Then a blinding pain in her stomach, it was hothothot. She stumbled back, pain and terror rushing through her mind.

“Haha...! Does it hurt?! It was more painful for me! I suffered more!”

“Ai!” A voice, much higher pitched than the man in front of her called out and she couldn’t help but grimace. Ai quickly placed herself in front of Aqua, as the man with the knife started rambling wildly.

“You had kids even though you’re an idol! Y-you betrayed us fans!!!”

An idol was always cute, pure, innocent, and sings about honest love.

 “I bet you were ridiculing us behind our backs!”

But Hoshino Ai was dirty and unfair.

She didn’t even know how to love someone.

“You damned liar!”

“You kept spouting all that crap about loving us! All of those were lies, weren’t they?!

‘I don’t get it... Something like love...’ The idol suddenly said, her voice trembling, “I have always been irresponsible. I’m such a hopeless human... I don’t even know how to love someone.”

Her arms began to feel weak, “So instead—"

And so, the only way for her to show love was through lies.

Her vision blurred, “—hoping that one day, those lies would become the truth.”

Ai’s felt light-headed but she continued speaking, knowing the words that she couldn’t hear clearly. Her mouth that only told lies began to tell the truth,

“Even now, I want to love you.” Ai knew that she couldn’t love him, but still, she wanted to.

He looked angry, gnashing out of his teeth, “Liar! You don’t even know who I am! Stop making excuses!”

She finally placed where she had seen that face. A clear bottle, containing red sand and bright sparkling stars.

The boy stuttered, “P-please take this! It reminds me of y-you...!”

Ai stared at the gift in wonder, it was the very first gift that she had received from a fan. A warm feeling had settled in her heart as she asked for his name,

“My name is—"

“Ryosuke-kun, right? You came to a lot of my handshake events.” So much so that Ai had felt how the hand grew larger as time went by. She extended her hand towards her fan, hoping that he’ll extend it in return.

At the man’s wide stare, she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed, “Wait, was that not it? Sorry, I was never good at remembering names. I really like the star sand that you gave me.”

The red sand and the sparkle of the stars in it reminded her of Ruby’s eyes...

She smiled at the thought of that, “I’ve still got it displayed in my living room...”  

“What the hell...!? I...! That’s not what I—!!!” Ryosuke-kun ran out of the door, screaming. She couldn’t help but thank the gods that he had seemed to have forgotten that Aqua was even in the room with them.

‘Where’s... Aqua?’ Ai wanted to look around, but she couldn’t muster any strength.

“Just get over here right now!” She could hear her child yelling at someone, was he calling an ambulance? He was a smart boy, after all...

The tension and adrenaline in her body suddenly left her, as she stumbled back towards the door. Maybe she should have felt the pain and impact but that hardly registered to her now.

“———!”

... Ai felt that her time had come. Maybe if she had been a little more careful...

“Well, I let my guard down there...” She had been a little too excited, look at what that got her. “So... door chains are for times like this, huh?”

They never taught her that back at the orphanage home.

Aqua was yelling something towards her, she really couldn’t hear it though. But she could feel him shake, and so her arms reached him.

“I’m sorry... this is probably... it, for me.”

The boy in her embrace began to shake.

“Are you okay? You’re not hurt are you, Aqua?”

He mumbled something in her chest, and somehow, she understood what that meant.

“I wonder if today’s dome concert will be cancelled...”

Everyone had been excited for that, Takamine, Nino, and Watanabe were really excited about that. They had been there since day 1, and even if they weren’t close anymore...

“I feel sorry for everyone.”

She couldn’t help but think of the man who had changed her fate. Her manager and adoptive father in paper, Satou Ichigo. She wondered what he would think now that B-Komachi’s center was gone.

“The movie schedule had been finalized, too.”

The director that Aqua was friends with really had been excited about that. He had been able to receive a few investments from large companies, mostly due to her status. Ai was more than glad to help with the movie, especially after he kindly let her star in a film of his.

“Apologize to the director for me...”

She felt a knock on the other side of the door she was leaning against. Aqua yelled something before she heard the high-pitched voice of her daughter yelling back.

“Ruby? Your dance at your preschool event... was wonderful.”

She remembered Ruby in their apartment’s small dancing studio, preparing herself for a fall. She remembered as Ruby slowly gained more confidence in her movements, the smile on her daughter’s face widening. Ruby had been so excited at that time, she still wanted to dance even after it was past her bedtime.

“You know, I was thinking that maybe you’ll become an idol one day, too.”

She certainly had the looks, Ai wanted to giggle at that thought. She was her daughter, after all.

“Mother and daughter performing together... Sounds fun, doesn’t it?”

The fans would certainly go crazy about that, wouldn’t they?

“Aqua, will you be an actor?”

Aqua had gotten her into acting too. It was fun for Ai, to learn how to act properly. She had gone to a theater group for a visit... Too bad she didn’t learn much from her time spent there.

“I wonder... what kind of adults you’ll grow up to be...”

She looked at their family photo, blurry as it was, a thought passing through her mind.

“Ah, I’d like to see you with your school backpacks...”

They would certainly look cute in them... She wondered if they would be excited for their first day in school.

“And on parent’s day... I want people to say, ‘Isn’t she a bit young to be their mother?’”

Their expressions would be priceless... Too bad, Miyako-san would probably be there for their cover story...

“As the two of you grow up... I want to be there to see it.”

Miyako and Ichigo would hopefully take care of them.

“Not that I was the best mom or anything...”

She thought back to her family, her mother that never came back for her, her father that was arrested for theft.

“But... I’m glad I gave birth to you.”

She held Aqua tightly in her arms as he began to still.

“Also... Ah, I gotta tell you this.”

She remembered the words that she had never said to them before. Ai had lacked the courage to say them before, but now...

She turned towards the door with what little strength she had.

“Ruby... Aqua...”

Barely seeing Ruby’s blurry silhouette through the door and tightly holding Aqua in her arms, she finally said it,

“I love you.”

... For a moment, she thought she had lied once again. To feel that pang in her heart that told her that she lied. But it never came. Relief suddenly overcame her, she finally said it, and it wasn’t a lie.

“Ah, I finally said it.”  Ai trembled.

Tears suddenly fell from her eyes, the mother known as Hoshino Ai felt relieved but saddened, “I’m glad... Those words weren’t a lie.”

It wasn’t fear that colored her last moments in this world. It was relief and regret.

On this day, the liar known as Hoshino Ai has finally reached her ending.

But someone had other plans.

For a while, Hoshino Ai wondered if the afterlife would be simply black like this. It was disappointing that she would never be able to watch over her children if that was the case.

“They’re gonna be fine.” An unfamiliar voice lightly chuckled.

Ai chuckled back, “I’m glad... Say, not to be rude or anything, but who are you?”

The voice seemed amused as it asked, “Me?”

Ai rolled her eyes lightheartedly, “Yes, who else would I be talking to?”

“You’re an amusing one, Hoshino Ai.”
The idol replied at that with a sigh, “That doesn’t answer my question, you know?”

“Very well then...” There was the caw of a crow and the flutter of countless wings before a girl suddenly appeared before her. She was young, barely older than the twins, and wore plain black robes blacker than even the abyss that surrounded them, paler than the first snow of winter, with bright golden eyes and hair that seemingly shone like the sun.

“I am Yatagarasu.” The girl announced, her deep voice unbefitting her small posture, with a smile without any emotion on her face.

Ai felt her entire being shake, but she couldn’t help but respond like she always would, “... A god, huh? Nice to meet you~...!”

With the sound of countless flutters, Yatagarasu was suddenly in front of her, “You’re audacious even though you feel terrified, I like it.” Ai could feel her entire soul shake at the sight of Yatagarasu's blank eyes.

Ai felt slightly adventurous as she asked even through her fear, “What’s to say that I believe you, Yatagarasu-chan?”

The black-robed girl paused then said in an annoyed tone, “I would highly prefer if you referred to me as ‘Yatagarasu-sama’.”

Ai felt accomplished that she finally managed to draw out an emotion from the being in front of her, a small smile appearing on her face, “Eh, what if I don’t want to?”

The goddess looked at her with amused eyes, before she sighed, “I was about to offer you something, but if you don’t want to...”

That certainly got Ai’s attention as she hurriedly apologized, “I’m just joking around, Yatagarasu-sama! Sorry~!” Whatever a god offered couldn't be bad, right?

Yatagarasu let out a satisfied hum at her work, “Hmhm.”

Ai found it cute, so she couldn’t help but ask the god in front of her, “Say, I expected for gods... to speak more oldy?”

Yatagarasu stared and replied with words Ai barely recognized, “Wouldst thou prefer a moe archaic manner of speech?”

The idol tried to process the words, “I barely got any of that...”  It was either because she didn’t have much of an education, or oldy Japanese was just gibberish to the modern person’s ears. Ai thought that it was probably both.

The god simply stared at her before sighing, “I’ll take that as a ‘no’. “

Ai hesitated before asking, “So... can you tell me about that offer, Yatagarasu-sama?”

“Tell me, Ai. Do you want to be with your children once more?”

Ai paused before asking with a small thoughtful frown, “... What do you mean?” The goddess surely wasn’t saying that her children had died or will die?

Yatagarasu clarified, “Hoshino Ai, I would like to revive you.”

Ai blinked before giggling, “Seriously? I think I might be becoming delusional before my death... Oh yeah, of course, this is just a dream...”

The goddess sighed, “You know that it isn’t.”

The feeling of her life leaving her body was too vivid, “... Yeah.”

“Why are you so surprised?”

Ai laughed lightly at the god’s confusion, “Yatagarasu-sama, I just got stabbed, died, a god appeared before me then told me I can be back in the living world. Wouldn’t it be weirder if I wasn’t surprised?!”

Yatagarasu hummed, tilting her head and nodding, “That is a fair point.”

“So... what’s the catch?” The idol highly doubted that someone would offer an opportunity without getting something in return.

Yatagarasu stared into Ai’s eyes, but the idol did not falter, “Hm. There are a few conditions... for our entertainment.”

“Entertainment, huh.” Ai muttered. The gods could be benevolent or cruel, she didn’t know which one this ‘Yatagarasu’ was... but-

“I can do that.” She was all too used to entertaining people.

Yatagarasu nodded, “Very well. First, you can only go back in the living world a decade after your death.”

Ai couldn’t help but complain, “That’s so long! So much could have already happened!”

The goddess didn’t seem to care, continuing to list out the conditions, “Second, you will not be Hoshino Ai upon your return, simply another 15-year-old girl.”

Ai let out an, “Eh...” It would be hard for her to convince Ruby and Aqua that she was their mother... How would she even go about telling them that?

That train of thought was immediately thrown out the window, “Third, you cannot tell anyone the truth about you, ergo you cannot tell them that you are Hoshino Ai. This applies until you find the truth about your children.”

Ai wanted to complain but focused on strange condition. “Truth?” What could that even mean?

The fourth surprised her, “Fourth, you must kill Kamiki Hikaru by your own hands.”

“... Hikaru...” Her ex-boyfriend. She already understood that Hikaru was the one that gave Ryosuke her address... She just couldn’t understand why he would do that. 

“Fifth, you must do all of this within 18 months. If you fail, everything will be reversed, and the world will forget your actions after your death.”

A year and a half were too little time. Not to mention she was going to be a 15-year-old, that would highly limit her options. Getting close to Aqua and Ruby would be hard, she wasn’t sure if she would be able to transfer to their school...

“If you accomplish all of this, then I will personally revive you as ‘Hoshino Ai’.”

The thought of killing Hikaru put a bad taste in her mouth, not to mention how elusive he had been after leaving Lala Lie...

Yatagarasu asked, “Will you accept this offer?”’

It would be a tall order for her, but still—"Heh, of course~!”

Even if she felt terrified, nervous that she wouldn’t be able to accomplish this, the liar known as Hoshino Ai smiled confidently, “Are you prepared to be entertained, Yatagarasu-sama?”

The goddess smiled at her benevolently, “You are truly a liar through and through.”

“Hoshino Ai, I bid you good luck.”

And with a crow's caw, the goddess disappeared in a flutter of feathers.

----

Hoshino Ai hummed, opening one of her slowly to peek at her children. She had been in a very weird dream, and even with how vivid it was—

When her eyes fully opened, the small creatures she had been hugging were simply two unfamiliar plushies. A blue cat and a bright red bird.

... She noticed the arm that she was moving, slender and smooth but it wasn’t Hoshino Ai’s. It was all wrong.

Ai sighed, an unfamiliar voice coming out of her mouth, “Seriously... Why couldn’t it be just a really bad dream?”

Sitting up, she stretched and felt her... chest, that was larger than she was used to. Weighing them, she murmured, “It’s going to be hard to adjust to these...” Her balance while dancing as an idol was perfected through her own body, so these additional weights were certainly going to be hard to get used to.

She stood up, gazing at the light blue room around her. Judging by the fact that there were numerous expensive beauty products laying around, Ai thought that she was most likely in a rich girl’s body. That, and the girl was most likely a model of sorts.

That would explain some of the posters of the same teenage girl that was well-endowed, posing, and the same teenage girl reflected on the tall mirror set in the room. Long black hair, a cute face, and pretty good curves. Ai wouldn’t be surprised if the girl was famous as a model.

A few memories suddenly were made clear in her mind, she was Sumi—

“Yuki! You’re going to be late for your shoot!” A woman yelled just outside her room.

Sumi Yuki, 15-year-old model.

Chapter Text

‘Tokyo really has changed.’ Ai stared at the buildings that passed by her through the window. She was all too used to a major city being ever-changing, but a decade had changed so much that Tokyo had been nearly unrecognizable.

‘I wonder how Aqua and Ruby are doing...?’

“Yuki, are you all right?” It took a moment for Ai to register that Sumi Akemi, Sumi Yuki’s mother, was talking to her.

She smiled, seemingly genuine, “Yep! Don’t worry about me, just kind of sleepy...”  It wasn’t really a lie; Sumi Yuki had been nervous for the shoot since the clothes brand she would be modelling for were well-known in the industry. Ai remembered modelling for them once, and how more efficient the process was compared to the modelling gigs she had been used to.

Daisuke Clothing, if she remembered correctly.

Akemi sighed as they turned to an intersection, “I told you not to stay up late, didn’t I? Seriously...” Sumi Yuki’s mother was her own manager, barely paying her daughter any attention until Yuki had expressed interest in becoming a model.

Ai giggled, “Hehe, sorry~.” Akemi stared at her strangely through the mirror, before sighing. “Hopefully you keep that energy in the shoot...”

The previous idol turned model smiled, “Don’t worry, I will.”

Compared to dancing and singing for an hour non-stop? A little lost sleep was nothing.

“We’re here.”

A few hours later...

Ai wanted to slap Sumi Yuki and her previous self for thinking that a little lost sleep was nothing. Her eyes were a little puffy, so the Daisuke Clothing staff had her face dipped in ice-water for half a minute. Not to mention all the additional make-up that needed to be added to her face.

‘Can’t I get this over with?’ Ai sighed inwardly.

The cameraman sighed, “No, no, you’re hiding too much of your left bicep!” It wasn’t her fault that Yuki’s boobs were larger than she expected. Ai couldn’t help but sigh, truly, big boobs were a nightmare.

After a while, it was finally time for a water break. Sipping on her drink, the former idol opened Yuki’s phone, looking up B-Komachi on social media.

It wasn’t long until she found what she had been looking for, “...” B-Komachi had been disbanded 8 years ago, their popularity plummeting when Ai died. It couldn’t be helped, she was their center, and her status as a rising star in the entertainment industry had put B-Komachi at a massive pedestal.

Without the idol ‘Ai’, B-Komachi was just another average idol group, that was the cold hard truth.

Ruby seemed to not have made her debut as an idol yet, which was understandable, and Aqua... Aqua seemed to have starred in a few minor roles in movies. It wasn’t bad, so to speak, but she honestly expected better. Aqua had shown that he had real talent in acting, and Ai wouldn’t have been surprised if he had become known as a genius actor much like that... Iruma Kama? Anyways, that red-haired girl that he had starred with.

But still, she was glad... They seemed to be doing fine. 

Yuki’s mother asked, worry and concern in her tone, “Yuki, are you alright?”

‘Yuki’ smiled, eager to get back to looking up on what happened to Ruby and Aqua, “Yes, mama.” Akemi stared silently at her phone, and Ai couldn’t help but freeze. What would she think? Would she think it was weird?

Surprisingly, it was a different matter that she raised, “You forgot to do your nails... Come on, is there something on your mind?”

“I know you argued with Futaba, but...” Yuki’s older sister, Futaba. A nail stylist and someone that Yuki had been eager to try and get the attention of. Futaba had taught her how to style her nails like a professional.

‘Yuki’ grit her teeth upon remembering that, “It isn’t about that.” Who the hell does she think she is, insulting her like... But still. It wasn’t about that, so could this woman stop bothering her?

“Yuki—”

“It isn’t about that! I—...” There was silence as Ai held her mouth in shock. What happened? Why had she been so emotional? This wasn’t her. Bowing down her head in shame, she sighed, “Sorry.”

Akemi bit her lip, her lipstick smudging slightly, “No, no, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to... force you.” Ai nodded silently at that.

The former idol could hear the murmurs of the staff around them, whispering amongst each other. Funnily enough, she was glad that this girl wasn’t all that famous yet. Otherwise, this would have been turned into a gossip machine for the tabloids. Wouldn't that be the worst?

The woman in front of her suddenly said, “Yuki, you weren’t giving it your all in the shoot.”

Ai wanted to frown but she gave a small smirk instead, “Is that what this is about?”

Akemi sighed, before speaking in a cold tone, “Yuki, listen to me. I’m going to speak to you as manager and not as your mother. You need to step it up.”

The model kept quiet, but she listened.

Maybe it was the frustration that finally got to Yuki’s manager, but she started to complain, “What are you so distracted about? You kept making mistakes that only an amateur would do!”

Ai wanted to retort, that she couldn’t be bothered. This wasn’t her body after all, why would she care? She was only going to be in this body for a year and a half, afterwards she was going to return to her family, her real family.

Akemi caressed her forehead, before sighing once again, “Yuki. If you don’t... perform well. Then your career is going to be over, is that what you want?”

Sumi Yuki had been struggling to get a modelling job for a few months, their agency’s top model always receiving and taking every opportunity leaving little to nothing for the remaining models. Then Ai remembered, that yes, this may not be her body, but could she just throw someone’s dreams away? Could she simply destroy someone’s future even though she had a choice, simply because she was lazy?

“... No.” Ai was unfair and a liar, but she wasn’t a monster.

The manager then snorted derisively, “Then get your head of your ass and start modeling properly.”

As the manager walked away, Ai nearly burst out laughing at her own incompetence, “Haha... Seriously, what am I doing?” This wasn’t like her.

Be prepared to be entertained, she said.

‘Did I just make that announcement to Yatagarasu-sama, and almost fumble the opportunity she had given me?’  How unprofessional of her. Maybe the unfamiliar emotions welling up inside of her was part of the reason, but she couldn’t blame it. A professional should remain a professional in a work environment, no matter what.

‘Seriously, I can’t keep making trouble for everyone.’

And this was an opportunity too, if she did this shoot well enough, then maybe she could earn just the right connections.

“Yuki-chan, your break is over! Please return to the set after the staff has set your make-up.”

She responded with a bright, “Yes~!”

As she began to walk onto the set, against the countless lights and the plain white background, she closed her eyes for a moment, trying to resolve herself. Everything here was meant to make her look the best she could be.

‘Keep your head in the game, Ai—Yuki, focus.’

The cameraman sighed tiredly, “Yuki-chan, please open your eyes...”

When the girl’s eyes opened, it wasn’t the girl who had gotten into an argument with her sister, it wasn’t the woman who regretted saying ‘I love you’ too late. It was the eyes of someone with burning bright confidence in her looks, like the first star that rose in the evening, a model through and through.

She was simply ‘Sumi Yuki’ for the duration of this shoot, and ‘Sumi Yuki’ had already formed her goal for today. She simply had to look cute, to look pretty in front of one camera—

‘I just need to make sure that your eyes are on me~!’

And with the knowledge of two different lives stored in her mind, her body moved instinctively.

Kaburagi Masaya was bored.

An old friend had called him over for a favor, but...

‘Amateur.’  Sumi Yuki made mistakes that could have been easily avoided. She had been modeling for 2 years already, so how could she make such mistakes? With the way she moved her body, it was as if she was unused to it.

It could have been a growth spurt or adolescence being troublesome, but that did not excuse the mistakes that should have been covered by her experience.

‘Unprofessional.’ She had been unfocused, her eyes always seeming to be thinking of something else. She was currently taking a water break, and judging by the yells, seems to be arguing with her manager. If she were any more famous, the paparazzi would have been drooling over her ‘bad attitude’.

His fingers twitched, trying to reach for a smoke that wasn’t there. Smoking wasn’t allowed in the studio, unfortunately for his nicotine-deprived mind.

He sighed, seeing Sumi Akemi walking over with a stiff expression on her face. She was about to speak before he replied. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to put in a word for her. She looks pretty enough to be in LoveNow.”

LoveNow was an upcoming reality TV show about pretty-looking high-school teenagers interacting and participating in events with another participant in the show. It had a high budget and was expected to do well.

The woman’s face brightened, her eyes shimmering with excitement and happiness, “Really? Thank you so much, Masa!” He stiffened at the sudden hug and the all-too-familiar nickname. He sighed, hugging her back half-heartedly, “Yes, yes... Can you let go of me now?”

The middle-aged woman giggled like a high-school girl as she let go.  Masaya felt embarrassed for her, rubbing his itching cheek.

He broke the bad news to the woman with a sigh, “Don’t get your hopes out about her standing out though.” There were no scripts in a reality TV show, but there was still acting. You needed to have a certain presence to stand out.

Akemi smiled brightly even at that, “I wouldn’t worry about that; she just wasn’t in the right mindset.”

The producer rolled his eyes, “Sure, tell yourself that.” He hardly would believe what the woman had said, even if it was her own daughter, given what he had been seeing.

Akemi pointed towards the teenage girl walking onto the stage, wearing a frilly white dress, “Look at her.”

Masaya noticed the way her movements were more confident as she stopped in the middle of the set, closing her eyes. There wasn’t a deep breath or anything, the girl simply stood her for a short moment.

Akemi questioned, strangely enough, “What is she doing?”

The producer answered for her, “Hyping herself up.”

Many performers had their own rituals before their actual performance. Some were more common, such as taking a deep breath to calm themselves down. Some were unique; he knew of someone who liked to smell her own hair before dancing. And there were a few cases where it was subtle, mostly taking place in the person’s mind.

Masaya noticed that these rituals were more commonplace in those who had to pay careful attention to their poses. Like models before they rapidly posed, like idols in their starting positions before their song and dance.

The cameraman seemed to be tired of the girl’s antics as he sighed, “Yuki-chan, please open your eyes...”

Sumi Yuki did, with eyes shining brightly like a field of stars.

Akemi muttered as the girl started posing, “... Yuki...”

It was a strange experience for Masaya, almost like a dream of sorts. He had only seen those eyes in a few people, one of which was the legendary idol ‘Ai’. Their star power was always off the charts, and their success in the entertainment industry was nothing but an inevitability. The model continued posing, moving rapidly between poses as the cameraman no longer needed to direct her. Every time that the camera flashed, not only did her expression change, her entire demeanor and body posture did as well. It was as if it was completely another person had taken over the girl’s body.

Leaning back against the wall, Masaya called out to the woman besides him, “Say, Akemi.”

The woman was in the same position as him, unable to take their eyes off the model, “Yeah?”

“I’ll pitch her with the best of my abilities to the LoveNow director, in exchange—”

That certainly got Akemi’s attention as he stared at the producer in frustration, “Hey, hey—are you joking? You’re the one who owes me a favor, you know?”

The producer nodded, “I know, that’s why I would like another favor. I want that girl.”

Akemi raised an eyebrow as she crossed her arms, “... Oi, that’s my daughter you’re talking about.”

Masaya rolled his eyes at the woman, “You know what I mean, I want her to at least consider being part of something.”

 “And that something is?”

The producer let out an insidious smile, “I still don’t know, but I’m sure... That girl will make that something splendorous.” It was a rare occasion for him to find gold before it had been uncovered.

Akemi sighed at his look, familiar with how he played his cards, “You’re still as creepy as ever.”

Masaya groaned, shooing her away, “Fuck off, woman.”

Chapter Text

“A reality TV show?” Ai questioned, poking on the chicken breast served on the plate. She had apparently performed well enough earlier that she could eat some fast food for today. Idols and models had strict diets, so that their looks didn’t differ even in the slightest or was at least minimal. Heck, they couldn’t even work out so much, since if they received just the slightest bit more muscle than their fans would like, then their fanbase would drop. Though the latter applied more to idols rather than models.

Akemi smiled kindly at Ai, “You don’t have to accept it, but I highly recommend that you do.”

Ai hesitated before nodding, the chopsticks clamping on the piece of chicken, “... I’ll think about it then.” Akemi seemed to have pulled some strings to get her a role in this ‘LoveNow’ but Ai still wasn’t sure if she wanted to do it or not.

Akemi didn’t force the issue and simply nodded, “Sure. Just give me an answer a week from now.”

Chewing on the chicken breast, she replied with a smile, “Yes~!”

She still had not formed a plan on how to complete any of the goals set by Amaterasu, much less accept everything else. Ai would prefer having a day or two, simply to formulate a few plans. Killing Hikaru would be... complicated yet it was the easiest thing to do, in her opinion.

The other condition was the one that confused her the most.

‘What’s the truth behind Aqua and Ruby?’ They were a little bit more mature for their age, but what else? Maybe they were destined to be super stars? Genetics have blessed them with Ai’s and Hikaru’s good looks, after all. That was the most obvious answer in her mind, but it couldn’t be as simple as that. Ai was fairly sure that the gods were merciful, but even if they had revived her, Amaterasu specified that it was for their entertainment. If everything simply went her way, then what would be the thrill in that?

She bid Akemi good night before retiring into Yuki’s room.

Ai stayed up late, looking up what exactly happened to her family and Strawberry Productions, her former agency.

Miyako-san seemed to have replaced Ichigo as the president of the company, with the latter disappearing into thin-air online. The only thing remaining of him online after her death was a short interview. She played the video, and it ached her heart to see the man who used to berate her continuously look so lifeless as he fished.

[“You’re... former president of Strawberry Productions, Saitou Ichigo-san, correct?”

“I don’t know who you’re talking about.”]

The man, with hair seemingly left uncut and with grey streaks on them, seemed to care little about the camera aimed directly at his face. Ai could barely see the eyebags underneath his sunglasses.

The cameraman continued to try questioning the man, before eventually, Ichigo snapped.

[“The moment I lost Ai... I lost my own life as well!”]

She bit her lip at what the man had said, “President...” Ai had thought that the man only saw her as something slightly more than the bread winner of their company, she never expected him to react like this.

[“I beg of you, please don’t bother us anymore!”]

The former idol questioned whether she would react like that if he had been the one to die. She didn’t know the answer to that but—Ai decided right then and there, “I should contact him soon.”

While she did feel bad, that wasn’t the main reason she wanted to contact him. “He’ll help me kill Hikaru.”

Maybe it was cruel of Ai, but she was willing to do anything at this point. She never did say who the father of the twins was, it had been a mutual agreement between her and Hikaru that they would never contact each other again after he got her pregnant. She was an idol, and he was... a playboy. Hikaru had first insisted that Ai should abort the kids, but she refused. The president was a sly businessman, so it wouldn’t surprise her that he would already know that the twins’ father would be a prime if not the only suspect, not that Ichigo knew Hikaru’s identity.

Adding that to her mental list of goals, she was surprised to see that Strawberry Productions seemed to be doing well. They weren’t focusing on idols anymore—with the disbanding of B-Komachi spelling the last of that venture—but rather online media personalities. Many video creators seemed to have signed up for them, and she couldn’t help but stare blankly at one of them.

It was a grown muscular man, wearing only a speedo and a cartoon duck mask for his head. To add onto to the ridiculousness of it all, he always talked in an exaggerated tone that reminded her of a duck’s squawking. While doing extreme exercises and dances.

Ai couldn’t help but gawk, “How cute~!” No wonder they were doing so well, this guy was surely popular!

Lo and behold, she was right. The man had the most subscribers in Strawberry Productions at YouTube.

Feeling satisfied with her former agency’s success, she began watching Aqua’s latest role. It was a live-action adaptation of the manga: Sweet Today. Ai didn’t really have the time to watch six 1-hour episodes, so she just skipped to the last episode where Aqua starred as the villain...

She was pleasantly surprised that the leading actress was a familiar face, Iruma Kama...? But that excitement slowly went away as the episode progressed. Ai couldn’t help but rub her eyes as she continued to watch, “... What is this? It’s so bad.”

The leading actor looked decent in appearance, but his acting... how would you put it... “It’s atrocious.”

He spoke like he was simply reading the script, his movements stiff like a brick. Even with her limited experience, Ai couldn’t help but be dumbfounded. She would get it, if the production values were low, but the editing was more than good. The music felt right, the sets felt realistic, but the actors...

“How disappointing.”

She skipped ahead to where Aqua would appear, the scene at a dark warehouse. As expected, the leading actor was still atrocious, but—

[*Splash.*]

Music suddenly creeped in as the sounds of someone stepping through a puddle of water emerged. The scene panned to a figure—

It’s hothothot—

“...” Ai felt her heart skip a beat for a moment, the hooded figure reminded her of a very unpleasant memory.

[“This girl isn’t the kind of person you think she is.”]

The Aqua in her phone’s screen seemed to embody the role he was cast as fully, his voice sounded deranged and creepy even as he spoke calmly. What surprised her even more was the seemingly sudden change of skill by the leading actor.

[“Huh... What the fuck did you just say?!”]

Aqua replied, gnashing his teeth in anger, [“Are you deaf?! I said you have nothing to gain from protecting that woman!”]

Ai wondered if it hurt Aqua, to act so wildly similar to her killer. The way he madly rambled as he held a knife made her stomach feel pain that wasn’t there. Pressing a hand on her belly, she kept watching as Aqua found himself thrown into a puddle, a horrid smile still on his face.

[“Nobody wants someone like you. Know your place and stop dreaming already.”]

Ai frowned upon seeing the bruise on Aqua’s face. It looked a little too real for her liking.

[“You’ll never amount to anything. Your life is nothing but pitch-black darkness.”]

And there was a beat, hopeful music coming as the camera panned to Arima Kana’s face, a genuine smile, and tears dripping down her face.

[“Even so, I believe there is light!”]

‘So, she can act well after all...’ Ai wondered for a moment if Aqua was the reason that the scene and their acting suddenly turned for the better, and seeing the scenes afterwards, she nodded. Everyone had returned to their previous level of acting, although with a slight improvement.

‘I wonder when I can act with Aqua again...’ It had been too long since they had appeared together in her opinion.

Humming, she looked at the time and found that it was around 1 A.M.

Thinking back, she couldn’t find anything that she would do tomorrow, so she continued looking at Aqua’s roles. She stumbled on a strange post online,

“Huh?”

[ DOT-TV Rumors @threeleggedleaker

Unconfirmed Cast of The Beginning of My Love With An Idol (LoveNow)!!!!

— Famous youtuber, Memcho

— Genius star actress from Lala Lie Theatrical Company, Kurokawa Akane

— Up-and-coming model, Sumi Yuki

— Star dancer, Kumano Nobuyuki

— Pretty-boy actor, Hoshino Aquamarine

— Rising band musician, Morimoto Kengo]

It shouldn’t have been trustworthy in the slightest, but the fact that her name was already on there had negated that doubt. Ai hasn’t even responded to the offer yet, so the person who had made this list surely knew insider info.

She felt a smile come onto her face, eyes shining brightly at the unexpected yet welcome surprise. Was Yatagarasu-sama guiding her even now?

“It seems we’re meeting sooner than expected, Aqua~.”

LoveNow would begin filming only two weeks later, that seemed so long yet so short.

Stepping out of her room, Ai went over to Akemi who seemed to be filing papers away on her desk, cheering, “Mama~! I’m participating in LoveNow!”

Yuki’s mother stared at her, eyebrows twitching, “For the love of god, Yuki... It’s 1 A.M., you still have school tomorrow—scratch that, it’s today!”

Ai paused, “I have school?”

“Yes, now go to sleep!”

High school was an exciting yet novel experience for one Hoshino Ai. But it wasn’t for Sumi Yuki. Ai had been confused at what was being discussed in class, it didn’t help that her growing body lacked sleep. Thankfully, Sumi Yuki’s knowledge filled in some of the gaps in her knowledge.

Still, it didn’t help with all the triangles and letters in Math class. Why did math have shapes and letters, anyway? They should just stick to numbers!

The bell rang in a familiar tune, signaling that their lunch break had started.

A girl (Sumire, her mind supplied) leaned over to her desk, “Hey, Yuki~! Do you want to go out for karaoke?”

Ai felt slightly excited at that thought but she shook her head, putting her hands together in apology, “I can’t... I’m busy, sorry~!” Thankfully, her and Yuki tended to act the same when it came to people, they weren’t that close with.

“Eh~? I thought you had no—” Her mouth had been hurriedly covered by the freckled girl beside her, Sakura laughing awkwardly as she dragged her friend away, “Ignore her, Yuki-chan! If you’re busy, then you don’t need to come! Bye!”

A part of Ai felt disappointed that they had left, she wanted to experience how friends ate together in school at least once... Sumi Yuki’s memories told her that it wasn’t really anything special, but that was because she didn’t use to be a loner at school!

Ai wanted to experience the spring of schoolgirls, eating lunch, and gossiping together, at least once! Sumi Yuki differed from her in that regard, wanting to focus more on the fact that she was a model.

With an offended yet light-hearted tone in her voice, she called after the two, “Hey, you guys better eat lunch with me, or I won’t forgive you~!”

Both girls blinked at that, before seemingly turning excited.

Sumi Yuki was right, it was boring.

Sumire giggled as she looked outside of their classroom window, “Melt-kun is so hot, right~?”

Why did they only ever talk about boys, anyway? She understood that hormones made teens seek out boyfriends or girlfriends, but Ai really couldn’t find any 15-year-old attractive. The last time she fell in love with a teenager, she got pregnant—okay, maybe that wasn’t so bad because the kids were Aqua and Ruby but still—he exposed her address to a crazed fan!

The freckled girl called her attention, “Don’t you agree, Yuki-chan?” Sakura seemed to be head-over-heels for this ‘Belt’, judging by the way she was sighing longingly.

Ai indulged the girls with a seemingly interested, “Let’s see, let’s see, where is this Belt~?” Looking out of the window, she spotted a boy with bright purple hair, eating alone as he stared at his phone. He looked familiar...

“His name is Melt, Yuki...”

‘Oh, it’s him.’ It was the actor who hit Aqua on the face. That bruise looked too real to be just makeup. Not to mention the way Aqua visibly flinched at the blow in that scene... Could she get away with—

Sakura called out to her hesitantly, “Y-Yuki-chan?”

She turned towards Yuki’s friend, the murderous expression on her face gone in an instant, “Yeah~?”

Sumire and Sakura laughed awkwardly, “Nevermind, let’s just eat!”

Ai hummed brightly as she went on the train home, Sumire and Sakura were surprisingly adept in idol culture, when they weren’t talking about boys. The more pleasant surprise was—

Sakura was showing both ‘Yuki’ and Sumire a B-Komachi concert on her phone, before both girls surprised Ai by shrieking— “Nobody can surpass Ai from B-Komachi you know?! I was born in the wrong era; I should have been there for her rise to stardom!”

They were fans of her! They were fans of ‘Ai’! It warmed her heart to see that 10 years after her death, people still remembered her.

Sumire nodded in agreement, then proceeded to utter the most horrific words that Ai has ever heard in any life, “Right~? I still want to kill that ****** **** **** **** who killed Ai, too bad he’s dead or else I would have *** **** * ** his ****—"

Sumire was also passionate, just in a different way than Sakura...?

The train shook as it entered another tunnel.

‘Ryosuke-kun is dead, huh?’ Ai didn’t know what to feel at that news. She hadn’t mustered up the courage to start looking at news articles regarding on her own death, so she still didn’t know that her killer had committed suicide.

She really didn’t know whether to feel relieved, angry, sad, happy, or anything at all.

... Ai sat quietly in her train seat for a few minutes or so, trying to understand what she was feeling but to little avail.

Sighing as the train came closer to her station, Ai resolved herself, “... I should be more focused on my goals.” She could think of understanding the feeling in her heart later, when she was back with Ruby and Aqua.

As the station doors opened, she bumped into someone, and instinctively replied with, “Sorry, excuse me...”

“Sorry... Huh, if it isn’t the school beauty herself, Sumi Yuki.” Ai suddenly paused upon hearing that familiar annoying voice. Turning around with a bright smile on her face, she asked innocently, “Sorry, do I know you?”

‘Belt’ was standing there, still in his uniform, flipping his hair like an absolute buffoon. “I am Narushima Melt, a second year. Yuki-chan, you can call me Melt-senpai~...”

Ai suddenly felt a little crack in her façade, “It’s nice to meet you Hiroshima-senpai, but I need to go! See you never~!” They haven’t even met, so how dare he try and get on a first-name basis already?

Before the boy could react, she began to walk away before she killed someone unnecessarily.

Belt muttered something that she definitely couldn’t hear, “It’s Narushima...”

Hoshino Ai definitely couldn’t hear him because she definitely didn’t have sensitive ears, and because she definitely was bad at names. And unlike her complicated feelings towards Ryosuke, Ai knew what she felt about that annoying little sh—

Ai opened the door to their apartment with her key, calling out to the air as she took off her shoes, “I’m home!” Sumi Yuki formed the habit for a single reason other than it being tradition. It was so she could find out whether Akemi was home, and whether she had guests over or not.
It seems that Akemi was home as she responded from the kitchen, “Welcome home~!”

And since there wasn’t any continuation after that, there were no guests! Ai felt a small smile come onto her face, carrying her bag as she skipped over to the living room, “What’s for dinner~?”
“Still the same, why are you even asking?”

The gods really wanted to try Yuki’s Ai’s patience today, didn’t they?

Ai’s lip tried to twitch but she quickly hid it by nodding towards the woman sitting by the dinner table, “Good evening, Futaba.”

Sumi Futaba looked at her nails, replying with an annoyed, “Call me nee-san, imouto.”

Ai let out a laugh, covering her mouth with a hand, “Haha, I’m sorry~! It definitely wasn’t on purpose! After all, I’m just a stuck-up model with no talent, right?”

The woman snorted derisively, “Oh, so you’re at least aware of that?”
Ai’s smile did not falter as she replied heartily, “Well, at least I’m not a leech—”

Akemi slapped the table to cut her off, “Both of you shut up, or you’re not getting any of the curry tonight.”

Yuki Ai smugly turned to the leech, “See? It’s different food tod—”

The mother of the two gave her a look, “Yuki, shut up.”

The former idol didn’t push the issue and responded brightly, “Yes~!” Humming, she went upstairs into her room, “I’m going to change first, be right back~!”

“Don’t bother—Ow!” There was the sound of a meaty slap.

“I could understand Yuki acting like that, but not you!”

Ai slammed the door to her room close, as she let out a long breath. Dropping her bag on the desk, she frowned at the reflection in the mirror. The girl in the mirror frowned right back, but Ai knew that it wasn’t her.

“What am I doing?”

Why was she feeling such strong emotions? Sure, she might be Sumi Yuki for now, but that didn’t mean she was actually the girl. She was still Hoshino Ai, mother of two, former center of an idol group, and still a professional liar.

‘Ai’ never let her emotions get the better of her. She always said the right thing even if that wasn’t the thing she truly felt. That was why she was glad that her last words to her children were the truth because she finally said both the right thing and it wasn’t a lie for once.

But Sumi Yuki wasn’t that. The teenager might try and hide her emotions, but she was an honest girl at heart. She couldn’t lie to the people she cares about.

Ai suddenly felt her heart turn cold at the thought of that. Were the lines between ‘her’ and ‘Sumi Yuki’ blurring together? Where did Sumi Yuki and Hoshino Ai differ? In fact, where was Sumi Yuki in all of this? Ai was in her body after all, but where did ‘Sumi Yuki’ herself go?

Ai didn’t know the answer, and she felt like she might not like it.

Rubbing her face, the former idol sighed, “I need to... I need to deal with this situation as Yuki.” She needed to be calm, to be reasonable. Sumi Yuki was a teenage girl upset with her older sister after a fight, therefore her reasoning was clouded with emotions. Hoshino Ai was an adult, but she was an outsider, and the problem with that was; she couldn’t intervene.

So, she needed to figure out how to act like ‘Yuki’ while ending this problem before it got any larger.

‘... What if I—’ Ai suddenly received an idea,

‘That should work, hopefully.’

Whether it was good or bad was up to her acting.

Futaba was utterly annoyed with her mother and sister.

Yuki was an attention-seeking brat, always annoying her to do her nails, even though she was clearly busy. That’s why Futaba had taught her how to do her nails in the first place! Heck, she even taught her how to put on all those nail accessories, but she kept bothering her.

Futaba wouldn’t mind it, if it weren’t for the fact that the girl only ever talked about how tiring modeling was, how pretty she looked in the pictures, and the fact that she took those things for granted.

‘It’s not fair.’

Then a few months ago, Futaba received a call that a celebrity was seemingly interested in their salon. Just half an hour before this major client would come to Futaba’s salon, she was doing her nails in a deliberate manner. It needed to look good, and the nail polish she had been wearing beforehand had started chipping.

“Hey, nee-san~.”

She replied, even as her hands started to shake, “Don’t bother me.”

“See, I’ve been—”

Futaba’s manicure suddenly slipped, ruining the design on one of her nails. Then it was as if a dam had burst, her mouth opening unable to be controlled, “I told you to not bother me!”

“You selfish stuck-up talentless brat!”

‘Just because you’re beautiful.’

“Do you think being a nail stylist is easy?! Do you know just how much fucking time I spent doing these?!’

‘Just because I don’t have the curves.’

“Just because you only have to sit still and look pretty—”

By the time her tirade had finished, her little sister had been standing there silently, trembling.

“I—" Her little sister had already run away before she could finish what she wanted to say.

SLAM!

Futaba’s mind returned to the real world as her mother slapped the table, yelling at her, “Get out, I said! Can’t you see you’re making Yuki uncomfortable with how you’re acting?!”

Futaba wanted to laugh, “Hah, as expected, I’m always the bad guy!”

“You’re an adult, why are you being so petty towards her?!” Futaba knew the answer to that, but she didn’t reply, and instead laughed mockingly. Her mouth opened and before she said words that she would regret, a peppy voice came from the stairs,

“Can the both of you calm down~?” Yuki hummed and sat on her seat, as if unaware of the things happening around her.

“Yuki—” “And here I thought you wouldn’t come down.” Futaba snorted, before sitting back down on her seat.

The older sister expected the teenager to act angered, sad, but what she didn’t expect was a seemingly bitter smile. “Why wouldn’t I be here? It’s been quite a while since we ate together, nee-san~.”

Futaba opened her mouth to reply but paused once she found that there was no presence of barely hidden hatred in Yuki’s words unlike earlier. Akemi stared at her youngest daughter strangely before sighing, “... Right, I guess a meal together would help calm us down.”

Their mother then left to pick up a few bowls, and the curry that had left to cool in the kitchen.

There was an awkward lull as Futaba and Yuki were left alone to seat at the table. After a few short moments, Futaba’s heart had scrunched with enough guilt to open her mouth but not enough to look at her younger sister, “So...”

“I’m sorry, nee-san.”

Futaba blinked, “Huh?”

“I know that... you were busy that day at the nail salon. You seemed so nervous at the time, your hands shook whenever you held something, so I wanted to distract you a little bit.”

Well, that was news to Futaba. Biting the inside of her mouth, she took a deep breath and nodded, “... I see.”

‘Great, I really am the bad guy in this scenario.’ The older woman thought to herself.

Thinking back to that day, Yuki had been oddly clingy yet helpful... Her little sister continued as Futaba continued looking anywhere but her, “I heard that... the client didn’t like how you styled your nails, so she just left.”

Futaba just nodded, “Yeah.” Though that was kind of underexplaining things. Turns out that celebrity had been aiming for a more... sophisticated yet simple look. Or more put simply, she wanted the expensive luxury products while Futaba’s salon focused more on combining affordable—though not cheap—products for the nails.

While it was a shame, at least that celeb wasn’t an ass and even offered to promote the salon in social media. While the effects didn’t seem that noticeable, one or two more customers each day was more than enough. Not to mention that said customers potentially becoming a regular.

“That’s my fault, isn’t it.” It wasn’t a question judging by Yuki’s tone.

Biting her lip, the older sister finally gave in to her guilt, “... Yuki, I—”

“I’m really sorry, nee-san. I-I—I’m so sorry...” What Futaba didn’t expect however, was her usually cheerful sister break down crying in front of her.

Let it be known that despite Futaba priding herself in being ‘cool-headed’, “Yuki? H-hey, no need to cry!” She was very much the opposite of that. Hot-headed, highly temperamental, easy to panic. The older sister of the family wasn’t used to comforting people, her mother being too caring to even consider burdening her children with her troubles, and Akemi being the one that Yuki goes to when she wanted to be comforted.

Still, she hurriedly went over to her sister about to pat her back, “I’m sorry for being a bad little sister—” But was more than shocked when Yuki hugged her as she cried.

Patting Yuki’s head as she continued rubbing her tears on her shirt, she hesitatingly said as she was not sure what to say, “You’re not that bad—”

“I’m sorry for being stuck-up—”

Futaba didn’t know how to reply to that, “Uh, uhm...”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

As her sister finally stilled, Futaba continued patting her head and saying what her mother would say in this situation, “It’s okay, it’s okay... It’s not your fault, okay? You’re the best little sister ever, got it?”
Yuki suddenly looked at her with curious eyes, sniffing as she asked, “Really?”

Futaba couldn’t handle the sudden eye-contact, opting to once again look at the ceiling, “Y-yeah...?”

“T-then why do you sound so unsure?”

‘Great, why am I this bad?’ Sighing, Futaba just told her the truth, “... I’m just unused to you crying.”

She felt Yuki slip away from her embrace, “I’m sorry...”

Futaba sighed, having realized her mistakes, she apologized, “No, I’m sorry... Nee-san was just in a bad mood that day, she didn’t mean anything that she said.”

As the older sister rubbed her head, Yuki suddenly perked at her words, “I’m not a selfish stuck-up talentless brat?”

For some reason, that allowed Futaba to finally gain the courage to look at her younger sister’s face. Her eyes were puffy and red, but still she had a cheeky smile on her face. Seeing the metaphorical hand in this awkward situation, Futaba shrugged and took it, “... You’re not letting that go, are you?”

Maybe it would take time before they could truly go back to their old relationship. But still, this was a good first step, in Futaba's opinion.

She was more than prepared for her sister's hug this time around, “Hehe~...”

Akemi, who had been obviously hiding earlier, finally walked out and said in a happy tone, “Oh great, both of you already made up. Who’s up for curry and some movie time?”

The Sumi family had been surprisingly fun to hang out with, complicated feelings about whether Ai had been wasting time aside.

‘I still have enough time for a little investigation today.’ Though she might say that it was already 2 A.M. and ‘Yuki’ still had school later that morning. Ai wanted to sigh at the reason that Sumi Yuki was still going to school in the first place.

‘She wasn’t popular enough.’

Sumi Yuki did not get enough jobs for an entire year so that she could be comfortable living off her wages, and it was still unsure if she could be popular to carry this career over longer periods of time. Her not-so-great popularity was only one of the reasons, the other problem was their modelling agency’s top earner.

Ai recited the name in her mind, ‘Sumire Yoshikage.’ 16-years-old, with a body that could make even the gods jealous, with looks that even Ai couldn’t help but compare herself to, the blond model was unsurprisingly a rising star in the modelling field.

But still, those two things were something ‘Sumi Yuki’ could still compete with. So, it did not make sense for little to no job opportunities to go to ‘Sumi Yuki’ for the entire year. An agency was still a business, so they could very well try to still invest in her since there were little differences in the ‘level’ of their looks. There was another major factor that prevented Yuki from competing with Sumire Yoshikage.

‘Charisma.’ Sumire Yoshikage could present herself well, with enough charisma that made you unable to take your eyes off her. Sumi Yuki simply couldn’t compare to the star power that Sumire Yoshikage had. That was why she was overshone.

‘Still, I don’t have to compete with her.’ Ai hummed as she searched ‘Sumire Yoshikage’ on the internet.

While Sumire was star rookie of the modelling industry, in the entertainment industry as a whole? She was still a no-name. No appearances in films or TV Shows, and she surprisingly had little to no interviews. So simply speaking, Ai could just ignore modelling for a while, and focus on other stuff to increase her status. Not to mention that way, 'Yuki' could still have some side-jobs if modelling doesn't work out for her as she grew older. 

‘Then, more time for revenge~.’ More time to plan for murder since she didn’t have to attend school!

Speaking of which—

“So that’s where you are, President~!”

Ai had thought that President Ichigo was in some faraway backwater region, but nope. The man seemed to have been hiding in plain sight. Only two trains away from Tokyo.

Glancing at the time, Ai grimaced, “It’s 3 A.M. already?” She still had school tomorrow, what a shame.

Sighing, she put the phone down and closed her eyes. Before a minute had passed, Ai had already fallen asleep.

Ai opened her eyes to a familiar black void, and her heart went cold. Had she died again? She didn’t think that not getting enough sleep for two days would kill her—

“Who are you?” A familiar girl’s voice asked.

Turning around, Ai saw a figure that she had been getting familiar with for the past two days.

With a trembling voice, Sumi Yuki asked Hoshino Ai, fear and fury in her tone, “Why are you in my body?!”
For a moment, there was an awkward lull as Ai suddenly looked down. The original owner of the body looked at the woman in front of her in fear, flinching once the body stealer moved-

Ai rubbed her head, laughing in an awkward yet cheerful tone, “Hehe... This is awkward, isn’t it~?”

Chapter Text

Seeing the dark-haired girl staring at her with so much fear behind those brown eyes—Ai couldn’t help but feel guilty. Here she was, stealing a girl’s body, one who had still a bright future ahead of her.

For her own selfishness.

( She ignored the little voice saying it wasn’t as if she had a choice, the gods were the one who chose Sumi Yuki, not Hoshino Ai. )

Maybe it was guilt, maybe it was for her own selfish gain, but Ai resorted to what she did best. With practice that was gained from countless fan meets and interviews, the former idol knocked her head and said in a cutesy manner, “Hehe... This is awkward, isn’t it~?”

She charmed the other person.

It obviously didn’t work the normal way against Sumi Yuki, but seeing the slightest bit of fear leave the girl’s body in exchange for confusion was enough for Ai. She already made the situation—the slightest bit—better! Way to go, Ai!

The teenage girl asked unsurely, “... Um, can you get out of my body?”

Ai felt the slightest bit of sweat drop from her forehead as she laughed, “Well... I can’t do that, unfortunately?” The reincarnated/transmigrated woman couldn’t help but hope that the girl would somehow instantly understand and say, Yes, I will let you pilot my body and murder a man with it!

As expected though, Yuki angrily questioned instead, “Why?! Just give me back my body!” Raising her hands in surrender, Ai placated, “Calm down please? I’ll try to explain.”

Yuki shook her head desperately, her voice quivering in rage and fear as she began to run towards Ai, “Give me my body back then I’ll calm—”

.

.

.

“Down?”

Well, she tried to run. No matter how fast the girl’s legs moved, no matter how long she ran, the gap never closed between them. As if there was an infinity between the two, a wall that they can see through but never cross. Hoshino Ai wondered for a moment what would have happened, if the invisible abyss was never there, if Sumi Yuki had crossed over and desperately tried to gain control over her body once more.

Ai wondered what would have happened if she did not see Sumi Yuki as the one in front of her, continuing about her days—

Ai felt terror at the thought.

Feeling the odd terror that ran through her core, Ai nearly vomited. Desperate to focus on anything else but that feeling, she noticed that Yuki stopped running as she kneeled on the blackness, tears running down her face. That sensation of disgust and feeling relieved that the girl didn’t seem to be able to close the distance between them, made her want to vomit more instead. But oddly enough, she couldn’t, and it felt more like something had lodged in her throat.

“W-why?”

‘Why indeed?’ The woman questioned quietly for she did not want to seem ungrateful to the gods who had given her this chance. Why was ‘Sumi Yuki’ the one chosen to be whom Ai possessed? Perhaps the girl was simply unlucky, perhaps she had angered the gods, or perhaps it was something else that escaped Ai’s own assumptions.

“Why?! Why me?! Ma... M-mama... Nee-chan...”

Futaba’s sister, Akemi’s daughter; the fifteen-year-old girl named Yuki cried.

Ai wanted to turn away, but did she deserve to? She wanted to comfort her, to hug the little girl in front of her, to tell her a lie that it would be fine, but wasn’t Hoshino Ai the one causing her to suffer? Her selfishness reared its ugly head, telling her to just get this over with, to interrupt the whining of a little girl, but she ignored it.

‘This girl... should be the same age as Aqua and Ruby.’ That thought gave her more patience than she normally had.

Sumi Yuki wasn’t simply a tool that Ai possessed, she was someone’s sister, someone’s daughter.

So, Ai waited and waited, with her heart growing heavier and heavier as each second passed.

Sumi Futaba was sleeping peacefully,

“Good morning, Futaba.”

Was being past tense. As a working adult, her body clock worked better than any alarm could. And so, she woke up at her usual 6 A.M. even if her body felt like it had been through countless trials and challenges for only sleeping 2 and a half hours.

“...” The woman kept herself quiet, hoping that her mother would leave the room and allow her to go back to sleep. It was an off-day for her anyway, being self-employed did wonders—

“I know you’re awake.” Her eyes were blinded by the sunlight directly cast on her eyelids, as her mother quickly took off the blanket that she was covering herself with. It was as if she had been thrown back to her high school days as she groaned, shielding her eyes from that dastardly sunlight, “Ugh...”

Akemi didn’t seem to be surprised by her uncouthness, only nodding with a gentle smile, “Good morning to you too, can you wake up Yuki? She has class in an hour.”
Futaba rolled on her old bed, replying with a sigh, “She’s as good as late then, just let her be absent for today.” Not really, but Yuki was prideful in her looks, too much in her opinion. It always took a lot of time to do her nails, to bathe, add some make-up for a teenage model—even if she barely got any modeling gigs—and given how prideful Yuki was in her looks... Well, she would rather not show herself if there was just the smallest blemish on her face. Heck, she yelled at Futaba months ago before their fight when she had slightly smudged her make-up before going to school.

Not to mention the travel time of the train if Akemi was busy today. Hopefully not, but who knows what could happen?

Though, truthfully, it was doable but, “I can take her around shopping, you know, for sisterly bonding...” Futaba just wanted to make it up just a little bit to her sister.

Their mother sighed, rolling her eyes, “I’ll think about it when you wake her up.”

Pumping a small fist into the air, Futaba tiredly cheered, “Yey~.”

Rolling herself off the bed, she slowly got up from the floor and scratched her bed hair. Yawning, she oddly felt nostalgic about the whole situation. The way that her mother always made her the one to wake up Yuki, the way she felt tired due to not sleeping enough, the steps she took to go towards the second floor. Futaba always felt that Yuki was the special one in their household, being the only one to have a room upstairs in the duplex.

As she slowly made her way up, Futaba wondered if Yuki had ever felt lonely to be the only one here, or did she feel relieved for the privacy?

That said though, she admittedly couldn’t give much of a care. Banging on the door, Futaba called out not so gently, “Hey, Yuki. Wake up...!”

.

.

.

There was no response.

“... Yuki?”

Futaba twisted the knob, frowning when it was locked. Grumbling in annoyance, she reached over to the picture frame of their family near the door, grabbing the hidden spare key behind it. The eldest sibling of the Sumi’s hesitated before deciding it was better to check if Yuki was awake again, “Hey, I’m gonna come in! Just tell me if you’re awake!”

Another silence that felt deafening answered her.

Their mother called from downstairs, “She’s not awake yet?”

“No...?” Futaba replied, oddly nervous and unsure. She and her sister had just made up after Yuki proved herself to be the bigger woman in the situation, and Futaba didn’t really want to go back to that passive-aggressive relationship. So could she risk—

Thankfully for her, Akemi seemed to have lost her patience as she stormed up the stairs.

Banging on the door, her mother nearly yelled, “Wake up already! Yuki! You’re late!”

Silence once again.

Akemi frowned as Futaba felt more and more nervous with every second, “... Give me the key.” Futaba quickly complied, handing over the key, hands oddly clammy with sweat.

Their mother loudly opened the door, quickly opening the curtains and turning on the lights in the room. There was not so much of a complaining mumble that would usually come from Yuki’s sleepy self, always so used to the comfort of the darkness in her room. Walking over to the still lump of blankets on the bed, Futaba quickly grabbed the sheets and nearly let out a sigh of relief when her sister became visible. That relief soon turned to anxiety as the fifteen-year-old didn’t move even when she was shaken, “Yuki...? Hey, wake up.”

... Nothing.

Futaba’s lip trembled, “Yuki?”

She didn’t respond.

“Yuki!”
Akemi cut in before Futaba could think of the worse, “She’s breathing, right?”
The woman hurriedly held her hand near Yuki’s nose, feeling the warm air released from her breath, she nodded, “Y-yeah, maybe she’s just really really comfortable? I mean—”

Akemi nodded, announcing calmly, “I’ll call 119, keep your eye on her.”

“R-right!” Futaba nodded frantically, taking a deep breath to calm herself.

All too focused on her breathing and Yuki’s unconscious figure, Futaba never saw the way their mother’s hand trembled as she reached for her phone.

Ai didn’t know how long it was before the girl finally stopped crying. Yuki peeked over her knees, eyes slightly widening in surprise, “... Y-You’re still here?”

The former model smiled bitterly, “I don’t really have a choice, Yuki.”

Yuki’s eyes widened even further at the mention of her name, “What do you mean? How do you—” She paused, “Right...” Of course, the one stealing her body would know her name.

Ai clapped her hands to get the distracted girl’s attention, smiling gently as she did so, “I did say I would explain, right? Well... Let’s get to introductions, shall we?” Seeing the girl nod, Ai opened her mouth, “My name is—”

The words stopped before they left her mouth.

She felt her entire being suddenly feel a great pressure, as if it was held within a giant hand, countless needles pricking into her core.

Do not break the rules, girl.

“Your name is?” Yuki’s question made Ai refocus into her situation,

With a practiced smile, she hid the nervousness and utter terror she had felt, “Sorry, sorry~! You can call me Tr-Tourmaline~!” Wah, she almost forgot how to pronounce that word.

The teen rose an eyebrow, incredulous, “Is that even your real name?”

Hoshino Ai winked, not too surprised that the girl caught on, “No, doesn’t it sound cool though~?”

Yuki sighed almost derisively at that, “Not really... If you’re going to go for english gem names, why not Ruby?”

.

.

.

The girl seemed to have noticed the pause, taking notice of the melancholy look on Ai’s face, “What’s wrong?”

Ai shook herself from the sadness, a smile and a fond look on her face, “That’s my—”  Do not break the rules.

 As that feeling crashed into her mind again, Ai couldn’t help but groan, “I can’t even tell you about that?!”
Yuki asked the same question twice, though this time she was horribly more concerned, “What’s wrong?”

Pouting, Ai crossed her arms and grumbled, “The gods won’t let me tell you my identity, and that somehow includes Ruby’s identity...? Oh, I can just talk about Ruby normally?” Well, that was a surprise, a welcome one at that!

Yuki focused on the bomb that Ai dropped, “G-Gods?”

Ai nodded with a bright smile, “Yeah, gods! Though I only know of Yatagarasu-sama.” She wanted to know who the other gods were, but since they didn’t show themselves... Ai couldn’t really force them, could she?
Yuki earned a thoughtful look on her face, “Yatagarasu? You mean the three-legged crow?”
The former idol perked up, nearly forgetting that the almost ethereal girl she saw was supposed to be a crow, “Yeah, she’s real pretty!” Not as pretty as Ruby though.
Yuki seemed to be confused at her response, a finger placed on her cheek, “I thought Yatagarasu was supposed to be male?”

To be honest, Ai really wasn’t that knowledgeable about the gods given her uneducated background, and she wasn’t interested about them. Until now, at least, “I don’t know, maybe she—he just felt being a little girl this time?” Really, if the ability was granted to her, Ai wanted to try being a guy for once. Though they weren’t as famous, male idols still were awesome in her opinion.

“... W-why are the gods involved?” Yuki asked, biting her lip in nervousness.

Ai felt surprised that the girl just accepted that literal gods were involved, but went with the flow and answered honestly, “They want entertainment, apparently.”

“... Entertainment?! This is entertaining for them?! They put a random woman in my body, and that counts as entertainment?!” Feeling the utter hatred in Yuki’s voice, Ai flinched as guilt once again resurfaced. Seeing the body stealer in front of her flinch, Yuki’s expression turned uglier, accusing, “D-did you make them do this...?!”

Ai hurriedly shook her head, desperately trying to explain, “Of course not! Y-Yuki, please calm down.” She wanted to, needed to, explain the situation to the girl. Her tone had been too carefree earlier, too lax, as if she didn’t give a damn about the kid that she stole the body of.

Yuki’s voice rose, trembling in rage, “Why should I—...”

She suddenly paused, much to Ai’s surprise, “R-Right, I need to calm down. That’s right, Yuki, just calm down...” Yuki started mumbling quietly to herself.

Ai helped, “Deep breathes, in... and out...” Or at least tried to. Yuki glared at her attempt, rage spilling from her tone.  “... You! J-just... please, don’t talk for a little while.” The girl sounded desperate, almost begging, strangely enough.

Guilt once again colored Ai’s heart, supporting her decision to respect the girl’s wish.

After a few minutes, Yuki sighed loudly, seemingly exasperated, “Okay, okay, I’ve calmed down.”

“You sure?”

The teen model laughed awkwardly, fanning her face, “Yeah, sorry about that... I just... I don’t know. I’m normally not this angry. Could ruin my face with all the wrinkles from frowning.”

“Well, with your situation... I guess the stress got to you?”

Yuki nodded, “Definitely. Tourmaline-san or whatever your name is, please continue.”

Ai paused, noting just how unfamiliar that word was to her tongue, “Hm, maybe you can call me ‘Suki’ instead? Tourmaline seems so long, and shortening it into ‘Tour’ or ‘Line’ sounds bad...”

“Suki, huh? I can guess that it isn’t your real name.” Well, she guessed right.

“Oh, I did say something about that huh. It’s close enough to my real—” Feeling the odd terrifying pressure once more, Ai choked on her words.

Yuki seems to have caught on to the situation, lightly frowning, “You can’t say?”

Ai’s smile started to become a little forced, laughing awkwardly, “Yeah. I hope you can infer though.” The girl nodded, thankfully, “I can.”

“A little backstory then? I used to be an idol—Oh good, I can say that.”

“Okay?”

Ai took a deep breath, as she began to explain the things that she felt that the girl deserved to know. Occasionally pausing mid-sentence at weird intervals, with a hand grasping into her utter being, due to the odd rules of the gods.

“What?” Even with all the effort she poured in trying to explain, Yuki seemed to be more confused than when they started.

With a clap and a non-wavering smile on her face, Ai explained in the most barebones way possible, “Basically, I need to murder my ex Kamiki Hikaru within a year and a half so I can live happily ever after with my family~.”

“... I... I’m sympathetic to your plight but... don’t commit murder while you’re in my body, please?” Oh, Ai thought. That certainly would pose a problem.

Putting her hands together, almost like a prayer, Ai tried to persuade the girl, “I... need to, please~?”

Yuki threw in a question, almost if not more desperate than the woman, “C-Can’t you hire someone to kill him?”
Ai bit her lip, because she had considered that. It would be much easier to just hire someone to kill the man, but—“The gods specified that I need to kill him with ‘my own hands’.”

Raising a shaking finger, Yuki laughed in a half-crazed tone, “Hehe—then m-maybe get your corpse’s hands then make someone kill him with those?”
Ai frowned in thought at that, “... That... Huh.” That seemed to be a doable option. She’d rather desecrate her own grave than not see Ruby and Aqua again.

Yuki seemed to be appalled at Ai’s reaction, “You’re considering it?”

Ai nodded, since it was a possible option, “Yeah, though I wonder if the gods would be angry if I took their words literally.”

A voice, both emotionless yet seemingly amused suddenly intruded, “That would be hilarious, truth be told. Unfortunately, that will not work.”

With the caws of countless crows and the fall of feathers blacker than the void, a small girl appeared in the middle of both Yuki and Ai, her golden hair shining like the sun amidst the darkness.

“Who?!” Yuki’s eyes shrunk as she questioned the presence of the girl in front of them.
Ai felt more cheerful at seeing the familiar face, “Oh hi, Yatagarasu-sama~!” But oddly that name didn’t seem to fit.
The original owner of the body seemed to have connected the dots instantly, her teeth gnashing at the mention, “A god...? Y-you—”

With a small smile, Yatagarasu(?) announced, “Calm down, Sumi Yuki. This is a chance for you as well, not only for Ai.”

“What do you mean?! My body was stolen and now you—”

The goddess tilted her head, seemingly confused at the teen’s accusations. Shrugging, she announced seemingly uninterested, “You were meant to die during the time limit that I have set for Ai.”

“... Huh? Y-you’re lying.” Yuki’s accusing finger shivered.

The former idol’s eyes widened in shock at that, that was news to her. She hadn’t even heard a single thing about that before.

The small smile on Yatagarasu’s(?) face widened ever so slightly, “I am not.” Maybe it was gut instinct, or perhaps some sort of divine power that the goddess had, but Ai believed those words.

Sumi Yuki was meant to die within a year and a half. The girl obviously didn’t take to the news well, her knees giving out as another cruel truth was revealed to her. Grabbing onto her hair, the teenager shook her head desperately, “I can’t die, I’m not dead, you’re lying, you’re lying—”

Ai glanced at the goddess nervously, and seeing the goddess’ reaction, her perspective of the ‘kind’ Yatagarasu shifting into something else. She had hoped—believed that ‘entertainment’ was a lie, so that she wouldn’t grab onto the gods’ kindness as a crutch.

But seeing the cruel smile on Yatagarasu’s(?) face as she simply watched the girl breaking down in front of her, as if it was hilarious?

 ‘We wish for entertainment.’ She now knew that those words were the truth, not white lies for Ai’s own sake. For a moment, Ai wondered if this was the same ‘Yatagarasu’ she had met before. This one seemed much colder, rather than the seemingly compassionate goddess she had talked to before.

Gritting her teeth, Ai tried to catch the crying girl’s attention, “Yuki, listen to me.”

“No!” The girl shook her head, screaming.

Taking a deep breath, Ai loudly, forcefully reminded the girl, “Yuki, your family is waiting, and so are mine. Please... calm down.” They couldn’t do anything if the girl simply cried, the goddess beside her didn’t seem to give a single damn about the time they were wasting.
Yuki paused, “I-I...” She began to breathe deeply again, closing her eyes, muttering something that I couldn’t quite hear. After a while, there was another loud exhale, but now Yuki stood up. Even with her eyes still red and puffy, she still stood tall, as if ready.

The golden-haired girl asked curiously, “Have you calmed down now?”

Ai sighed, exasperated, “Mou, Yatagarasu-sama, you need to be more mindful of a girl’s feelings.” Seriously, the gods were crueler than Ai had thought.

Yatagarasu(?) shrugged, “I apologize, I am rather unsympathetic as a necessity for my role.”  Like Ai or Yuki would believe that this girl was sorry.

“... How do I live?” The teen asked, her voice shivering still.
The goddess raised an eyebrow, “Have you calmed down?”

Yuki paused, taking a deep breathe, and her voice now clad with steel, “How do I live?” The deity didn’t seem to care much, only humming, “Kill Kamiki Hikaru.”

The teen frowned at that, a questioning tone as she seemingly began to connect the dots, “... That doesn’t make any sense.”

“What is?” Ai was curious.

“Can’t I just run away?” ...

There was a moment of silence, as if this solution was obviously right, before the god laughed maniacally.

“What?!” Yuki snapped in anger.

“A clever option, if only fate weren’t so... set in stone.”

“Then if fate is like that, why can you do something about our fates?!”

“Ah, I alone can’t but we can. I am only a messenger amongst the gods, we wish for entertainment, and seeing you struggle against it... Well, we find it both hilarious and exciting enough to do something about such a tragic story.”

Ai’s blood ran cold, “Hilarious...?” The gods that she thought were looking forward to how she won against the trials thrown upon her, saw her as something funny?

That felt humiliating.

“We are partial to the stories of mortals fighting against their fates, against forces that they cannot control. When these stories succeed, we find them inspiring, and when these stories fail, we find it hilarious. Either way, it will be entertaining, don’t you agree?”

“Tell us, would thou wish for thy story to be a tragic comedy?”

A twisted smile, eyes brighter than the sun accompanying the realization that Ai found,

“Or would thoust prefer... a hopeful drama?”

The gods did not love her.

But then again, Ai was already used to that. Even if they didn’t love her, she simply needed to give them a reason to.

“I don’t know if you’re Yatagarasu-sama or not but listen!”

“Ara, we do look similar, don’t we?” Ai realized that this god felt more provocative, more uncaring yet more invested in this ‘story’.  

Grinning widely, Ai pointed towards her in success, “I knew it!”

.

.

.

“... And?” The god simply stared at her with a curious grin. “Oh right, my proclamation. Ahem.”

The thought that this wasn’t that kind god she had met before had admittedly made her more nervous, but still— “Maybe you’ve heard my words once before but listen!”

She felt terrified, knowing that the gods didn’t really support her or would aid her beyond what they’ve already done, but she couldn’t, nor would she allow herself to show that emotion.

She was—is an idol. Pure beings of joy, untouched by the material world. Even if her audience was drastically different than what she was used to, adaptation was Ai’s strong suit.

“You want entertainment? Then be prepared!”

As she said those words, Ai could feel the veil once more. The veil of her beautiful lies forming as the unknown goddess smiled wordlessly—

“I’ll knock your socks off, dear god!”

—and Sumi Yuki, spectator, and unwilling participant, couldn’t help but be swept away by the power of those lies.