Onto todays chapter which is… well… it isn't a character chapter per say, though it does involve Miku and Kotori, but it's more of a lore chapter, using a piece of lore I personally have not seen utilized yet. It might be confusing at first, but I'm sure you'll pick up on the lore I'm talking about if your smart enough.
Date A Live! Practice Chapter 12:
Kotori was sitting in a room of Fraxinus, sitting comfortably on a chair in a conference room with her legs crossed over and a clipboard on her lap. She was tapping the clipboard with a pen, almost as if she was impatient, which matched her facial expression. "… Ugh, where is that asshat?" She asked out loud.
*hissssssss* The door to the room opened.
"He's right here…" Michael said, flatly… with Miku attached/wrapped around to his arm. Don't get him wrong, he's always had that small crush on her as a fan as mentioned before, but the whole situation with her was exhausting to say the least. If he had to weight it, it'd probably be as heavy as Kurumi's and Kotori's ordeal, but lighter than Kaguya's and Yuzuru's. He didn't have to play Luke Skywalker VS Darth Vader during those fours' story quest lines.
And speaking of a certain Nightmare, she disappeared… again. Where the hell does she keep running off too?
"Darling? After this, can we get Italian for dinner?" Miku asked, her body snuggling closer to Michael's own, which included her enormous breasts. Whether or not this was done accidentally or on purpose was unclear. Regardless, she gasped in delight upon realizing something. "Maybe after that, we can visit a karaoke bar! You know all my songs by heart, and I can sing just for you like I promised!" She hugged him tighter, getting excited and further squishing herself into the Spirit Sealer, which did make him redden slightly and caused Michael to bite his lip.
Then she added with a honey-filled tone, also leaning closer to his face which wasn't helping the situation: "You can invite the other girls too… I'm not a narrow-minded woman…"
"WILL YOU KNOCK IT OFF!" Kotori lost her temper, her yelling breaking the moment for the singer and her fan. Thankfully Kotori's temper flare only lasted for another second before taking a breath. This can be interpreted as either annoyance or jealousy on her part. Miku has been acting much like a child the past couple of days, but as Michael has mentioned… she never got to BE a child.
Aa he put it: she basically lived the Disney Celebrity racket.
"Tori, I get we gotta find out how she became a Spirit and all," Michael was saying. "But wouldn't it have been easier to have this interview a week ago?" He said, as that's how long its been since resealing Tohka those days before, then sealing Miku a day later.
Kotori did not say a word, remaining annoyed. Instead, she pulled out a remote and pressed a button on it, making a monitor lower down from the ceiling near them. Pressing another button, most likely 'play', a video was then shown to the 3 teens.
It was Miku, sitting in this very room, with her arms crossed and legs folded over the other. Her eyes were also closed with a frown on her face. "Lets try this again…" sighed Bad Marriage - Kyoji. "Why did you feel you had to control people?"
All Miku did in response to that was release a 'humph' before turning her head away.
Kotori pressed another button, same emotion on her face, skipping to CEO - Masaomi Mikimoto, who was also attempting to interview Miku. They were in the same positions as above, and he looked just as exhausted as Bad Marriage did. "Since Michael is still unresponsive, what exactly happened with him and Tohka?" He asked, the wording implying this conversation occurred sometime after Michael collapsed from exhaustion on the now-destroyed DEM building.
Miku didn't answer him either.
"… How about your Idol career? When did that all start?" He tried using a different topic, one Miku would probably prefer. Surprisingly, she STILL did not answer even though that was something she loved. She still turned away, refusing to give CEO anymore if her time. "… alright, I'm done." Masaomi then began to leave.
Kotori skipped again. "Your skin so smooth! You have to tell me your secret!" 100+ Wafiu's - Munechika Nakatsugawa said while speaking passionately, though it's unclear if that was intentional or just part of the job for the sake of the interview to get Miku to start talking. "And your singing! It's honestly like listening to angels in a church choir!" He continued to praise her.
Regardless, Miku was unresponsive. In fact, she turned away sooner from him than anyone else. Even behind those glasses, you can tell Munechika was hurt. "… listen, Miss Izayoi; I'm merely a humble staff member, but I'm really trying to help you just like Michael was." He said, and the mention of Michael's name did get Miku to react somewhat, slowly reopening her eyes… a sign of progress? Munechika looked hopeful…
…
…
Miku "humphed" away again.
Munechika cried… he literally cried… bawling his eyes out on the table.
Michael had his eyes glued that video the whole time, which now those same eyes were shown to be slightly wider in circumference. Part of him was in shock… then again, this was Miku, considering her and men don't exactly mesh well together. "… Instead of 3 lonely Discord Moderators, shouldn't you have…?" Michael attempted to state the obvious, but Kotori was one step ahead of him and simply skipped into the video again, to the female employees of Ratatoskr.
"Let's get back to your Idol career for a second," Asked Deep Love - Kozue, sounding like she was going back to square one. Unlike the other interviewers, she kept her eyes on the clipboard and lifting some pages of it up, probably where the questions were located. "Did you enjoy it? Was it stressful?" She asked while looking back at Miku.
Despite being her own gender, Miku STILL refused to answer.
The video skipped to Nail Knocker - Hinako, whom normally had a friendly demeanor, now looked to be slightly straining to keep that demeanor. "After using your Angel to control thousands of people that day, what changed your mind?" She asked the Diva. "Also according to Commander Kotori, he was a fan of yours. Did that have some sway in your decision?" She added, the 'he' most likely referring to Michael himself.
The mention of Michael's pronoun did appear to spark some interest in the questioning directed at Miku, but just like with Munechika, she brushed it off all the same. Reine was shown with Miku next, Miku's eyes shut and her body in the same position as all the other times, while Reine just looked at her in silence.
Reine: …
Miku: …
Reine: … not gonna answer anything I ask, are you?
Always the brighter one, Reine picked up on Miku's mood and unwillingness to cooperate at this time for whatever reason. Miku, as like with the others, did not respond.
The final one was Kotori herself… which kind of explained the loss of her temper just now. "If you want something done right…" she grumbled under her breath as she walked into the room with a clipboard and sat down, and with Miku not having moved, meaning this was probably directly after Reine's turn. "Alright, Diva. Let's start with the basics… your name is Miku Izayoi, otherwise known as Tsukino Yoimachi, correct?"
Unsurprisingly by this point, Miku didn't answer Kotori's question. She gave a small "hmm" sound, not a full annoyed "humph" like with the other interviewers, but it still had the same effect.
"… that's a yes." Kotori dryly said with an annoyed stare, but let it go and marked down something on her clipboard. "Clearly, you have an issue with men. Care to elaborate?"
Miku didn't answer, but this time did turn her head away, but only slightly this time. Kotori looked more annoyed but still kept her cool. "… with that said, why did you end up helping Michael rescue Tohka?"
"Humph." Now Miku gave Kotori a real pout, turning her head away completely.
Now Kotori's eye began twitching. "Can you at least recall how you became a Spirit?" The Commander asked in a kind (yet very strained) tone of voice. With all the stress of seeing how dangerous Spirits can be with Kurumi, then to an even worse extent with Tohka's Inversion taking on multiple Spirits at once like Kurumi did (though at least Kurumi showed some signs of exhaustion further into her fight) and how Michael barely survived the latter and passed out in Tohka's arms after coughing up blood… this was the last thing she needed to deal with.
Miku "humphed" a second time.
"ALRIGHT! What is your problem?!" Kotori couldn't take it anymore and snapped at the Pop Idol. "We provided you with food, water, medical treatment. Hell, we even fitted a room up to your accommodations; which wasn't cheap by the way!" The look on Kotori's face told that she might try pulling out her hair by her twin tails in about 3 seconds. "What more do you want from us?" Kotori asked.
Here. And only here. Is where Miku showed actual interest, looking back at Kotori as if she didn't just aggravate her and her staff for possibly hours. "What I want…?" She repeated, then looked upwards with her eyes as if searching her brain.
Kotori ended the video there. 'You've GOT to be kidding…' thought Michael as the video was stopped and seeing how Miku was still bratty. Funnily (and ironically) enough, the females had it even worse.
"Now do you get it?" Kotori asked Michael. Oh… and he got it alright. Loud and clear.
Miku openly refused to talk, and simply would not talk, without her "Darling" present.
Michael used his free arm to pinch his nose, and held it there for a few seconds. He also has his eyes closed and shook his head a little. Dating a celebrity might sound appealing to most people, which it was for bragging rights is totally fine, but once you get stuck with it…
"Once a Disney celeb, always a Disney celeb…" Michael muttered.
"Now… lets try this again…" Kotori said, going to try the interview again, and hopefully Miku will actually cooperate now that her Darling was here… Kotori felt as if she threw up in her mouth. She can somewhat react to the fact Miku lost her childhood, but god damn she was annoying… and VERY clingy. Kotori couldn't help but look at how the Diva's breasts smooshed into Mike's person before looking down at her own chest, but then shook it off and went to continue the interview. "Your name?"
"Miku Izayoi!" Miku cheerfully answered.
Kotori had to hold in and bite her lip the urge to yell at her, as only now Miku answered a simple question. Michael caught his stepsisters/roomates expression, and he can only imagine what Miku put the entire crew through while he was catching Z's in the med bay for a few days.
"Seeing as you don't have a problem with one man…" Kotori muttered, skipping that question. "How exactly did you become a Spirit?" She asked at a normal volume this time.
At the exact time that was asked, Miku made the same pained expression as when she admitted her past to Michael back in the DEM building and the reason she was silent in her song-making for 5 years in a row. She never mentioned how she became a Spirit, only that her voice had vanished and she was left in a state of depression, along with a hatred for males she developed as a psychological defense.
Judging by her tears slowly going down her face for the second time, and hugging Mike a bit tighter… it was still a very painful subject.
Michael observed both girls before him. Kotori of course, looked confused as DEM had a jamming device of some kind that prevented them from keeping track of Michael (at least until Tohka blew up the top floor) and had no idea of the events between Miku and Michael while they were inside. Therefore, the Commander had no idea what triggered such a response from the Idol and was left with an expression that asked: "What'd I do?/Was it something I said?"
And Miku of course… well, traumatized.
As Michael thought about it; maybe this interview, especially this early on from both his recovery and Miku's sealing… it was simply too much for the poor girl. One that acted so strong but in reality, was actually just scared. Scared of losing everything all over again after having her dreams ripped away from her in an instant.
Michael: … Tori, let's…
"No…" Miku cut Michael off, already predicting what he was going to say. "… It… It's okay…" She continued, gathering her mental strength. "I'm not… scapegoating anymore… I want... to face my fears and learn from my mistakes…" Miku then squeezed the boy next to her a bit tighter, but gently. "With Darling by my side now, I… I can move on…"
Mike was a bit surprised, almost as surprised when Miku suddenly kissed him and let herself be sealed. She was using the exact same terminology he had used with her when she opened up to him a bit within DEM's walls, showing his words did have an effect on her despite her claiming at the time otherwise.
After a deep yet shaky breath, Miku exhaled and continued. "It all started when I was in Elementary school, when I was a little girl. I was never good at sports or studying, but I loved singing more than anything." Miku said, going into more detail about herself. "Eventually, other students and even teachers praised me and my voice, especially during plays and musicals."
Both Kotori and Michael just looked and listened with interest upon Miku's story, where the former didn't even write this in her clipboard. Michael more-so as he was her "number one" fan, and this was one of those interviews you'll never see on TV or read in a magazine.
Best part: he had a front row seat to it.
"Before long, I began looking into and up to Pop Idols; and wanted that for myself, plus reach the biggest audience as possible." Muki continued. "Like Darling said, I started out very strong, gaining global fame in such a short time even before my Spirit Powers. You can imagine how many big studios and companies were surprised, some random girl coming out of nowhere and beating all the competition. Even Disney approached quite a few number of times… I denied them of course. Something about a company with a rat for a mascot felt off."
'Thank. God.' Michael thought, not even willing to imagine what would've happened to her if she went down that route. Miku dodged one hell of a bullet…
"My dreams were finally coming true. People loved my songs and I loved singing to them… it was absolutely perfect." Miku went on, her voice getting happy as she recalled as these pleasant memories of her life. "I felt… like I was making a difference with my music…"
A few flashbacks were shown to visualize her point. First was her on stage, singing and looking happy prior to gaining Spirit powers and at a much younger age. Next was her global status being shown, rising above everyone else. Finally, she was shown on that same tour she and Michael first officially met.
Whatever happiness Miku felt faded just as quickly, her expression saddening. "Then… that producer come along… I lost everything…" Some tears began forming in Miku's eyes. She did hold them back. "I… I thought about… ending it all. My fans… were everything to me…" A single tear went down her face, the Diva still trying to remain strong. It was here both Michael and Kotori saw how serious Miku's situation truly was. To hear she was gonna quote 'end it all'… that was dark.
"I saw this light one day, a human shape covered by mosaics; God I thought; and she offered me a power she claimed can give a new voice… a second chance… one so beautiful, so pure and powerful… one that can change the world. She offered me a shiny gem, which melted into my chest the moment I touched it," Miku said, and it didn't take a genius for the step-siblings to figure out whom this 'God' was.
Phantom… it just had to be. Just like Kotori with her brother, Phantom took advantage of Miku's vulnerable state and turned her into a Spirit.
This gem-thing though… that was new.
Mike felt pang in his head, no not a painful one, but the one you feel when you just remember something important that you may have forgotten. He immediately flashed back to the official meeting with Darth Westcott, the voice of the man echoing in his head:
"We can extract the crystals out of them later."
Since he was half-conscious at the time, Michael didn't know the full context of such a weird sentence his father had said just before Tohka performed a Dark Form without a Keyblade. But hearing that now, and Miku apparently having received one herself, crazily around the same time he gave Tohka her name (which also implies who may have caused that one quake when he first arrived in Japan)…
'That's one crazy coincidence…' he thought.
"Immediately after, I felt my voice return. It was a little scary, hearing a new voice come out of my lips; but whenever I spoke, people listened. They didn't question me either." Miku continued her story. "In just a few short months, I gained everything back. My fame. My Career. But more importantly…" Miku began crying a little faster, and it was obvious why. "M… my voice…" she cracked, barely able to get that out.
One of Miku's hands that subconsciously found its way on the table sometime during the conversation, was quickly yet gently grabbed by Michael's own. It caught the pop idol completely off guard, snapping her eyes in the direction she felt contact, but of course calmed down once she realized whom the offending hand was attached too. He then squeezed her delicate hand, which again surprised her until she looked at his face.
He wasn't upset, but concerned. He was looking at her with a look that said: "stop forcing yourself", but not in an overly nice way. It was more half of that, the other half asking: "why the hell are you torturing yourself?"
Michael might say some shit, but he wasn't stupid… she was being brave, which was fine; but she clearly wasn't entirely ready to have this conversation.
"I think you've said enough." He said to her without breaking eye contact, which in turn locked her eyes into his and didn't look away. He then stood, which somehow caused a chain reaction in her body to stand up with him. They're hands did not disconnect, not even a little. "We're calling it a day." Mike turned his head to Kotori just before stating that.
Now as bad as Kotori felt for Miku, she still had a job to do. "A day?! But we don't know how she became a Spirit!"
"And your one to talk." Michael said, not trying to be mean but that could be misinterpreted as such to those outside of their relationship. This did make Kotori go silent, seeing as she was in no place to point the finger since she too did not say a word about her Spirit status. "Just give her some time. Let her gather her thoughts together and when she's ready, and not a minute before, we'll try again."
As much as Miku was willing to answer questions (provided her "Darling" was around), she couldn't help but feel her heart flutter a bit. Despite all the terrible things she attempted to do to Michael, then when she didn't get her way she threw a tantrum to put lightly, which included forcing his harem to turn against him. Yet even still, he was looking out for her best interest, seeing that the questioning did in fact not exactly bother her, just made her feel uncomfortable and emotional as the interview went on.
Just as a she dreamed her fans should, this one supported her every step of her way, but also wasn't afraid to call her out either if necessary… her number one fan.
You could tell Kotori wanted to say something, but whether it was agreement or a snarky comment in disapproval was unknown. Regardless, the last thing Kotori did was look at her clipboard for a few seconds before sighing. Michael was right… the poor girl had it as rough, if not more, than she did during her time before and as a Spirit.
She did mutter one thing as the other 2 walked out: "Should've just attached electrodes to her head…"
XXX
To avoid the public eye, Michael and Miku were teleported near the Spirit Apartment, but near a small shaded staircase area that lead to another house development. There were also allot of cats here, and some of them react to the duos sudden arrival by moved anyway either in shock or just at a normal speed. Miku did not recognize this area, not having been here yet, but it appeared Michael did and started walking up them.
"Come on. Up here." Michael said, walking up the stairs.
The Diva was still hand-in-hand with Michael, not having let go mainly because they both forgotten about it. Miku happened to see it when she lagged a second behind Darling, and noticed they were still connected by they're hands… she couldn't help but stare at it even as they walked. His grip was quite firm, but it wasn't painful either. It was more of a "stick with me and I'll protect you" kind of grasp.
And it was so gentle… so warm…
They then arrived at apartment, though it was here Michael noticed they were still holding hands. That was both a dream come true for Young Michael, but seeing as Miku was quite popular, it might end up dong more harm than good. He removed his hand, but made it seem like he was going for his pocket for the key, which needed to come out anyway so it was perfect cover.
When Miku's hand left the warmth of Michael's, she found herself feeling disappointed the moment her hand went off on its own. It felt cold without the extra heat. Of course, Miku saw he was unlocking his door, so its not like he meant to right?
Still… his warmth felt really nice…
The moment Michael inserted his key, "I'm sorry, Darling." Miku said suddenly, making the American look back at her. He saw she looked like she felt bad for some reason. "We'll have to cancel our plans for Italian…"
Michael looked carefully at Miku's body language. First of all, what plans? As she literally only brought that up the moment before the interview, but he wasn't gonna say that to her face, mainly due to her pained and exhausted expression. The additional details of her backstory took allot out of her.
However… he could tell it wasn't just that.
"Miku." Michael said her name, getting her attention. "What's bothering you?" Miku did open her mouth, probably to deny it, but Michael added: "It's obvious."
Miku sighed. Michael knew her pretty well. She turned her head away before giving an answer. "Its my fault…" she said lowly, but it was still audible. "Tohka got captured because of me… I put us all in danger…" Miku's voice began shaking. "If I just accepted it… accepted defeat the first time, maybe she never would have transformed the way she did… then you never would have gotten hurt…" at this point, some more tears rolled down her cheeks, her eyes obscured by her hair. It also added more context why she was denying interviews in the first place without Mike there.
It wasn't out of being bratty… it was out of guilt.
"Miku." Michael said her name, getting her attention back on him. "None of that was your fault."
"Yes it was!" Miku said. "You were right, Michael! I was afraid… I was making a scapegoat, being haunted by nothing but a Boogeyman in my head ever since I lost my voice!" Miku's tears were flowing a little faster. "If I never accepted that horrible power, I never would have given into it! I never would have bent the wills of people like a damn succubus!" Miku then flashed back to the amount of times Mike bled when he overused the other girls' powers, be it coughing it up or it squirting out of cracks that formed in his body. "I put you in danger… I got you hurt… its because of me…" her voice cracked as she turned away, showing she still had deep regrets about that whole situation even though it had passed over.
"Miku…" Mike called her name. He heard his footsteps as he walked around but closed her eyes, unable to look at him. "Miku!" He called again, but she turned her head away from the sound of his voice.
Miku then felt her shoulder was grabbed, not too tightly to be painful, but strong and quick enough to make her flinch and snap her eyes open. Before she could react, she felt warmth on her cheek as it pushed her into the direction it wanted to take her.
All she saw now were Michael's hazel eyes locked onto her, but they were not angry… they were determined and concerned, the same look she saw in the stairwell during the DEM break-in. It made her freeze, not expecting to see that look again; least of all this soon, or directed at herself.
"Tsukino…" he used her old name, the name he knew her as before all this, which got her undivided attention. "Look at me… and read my masculine pink lips very carefully…" he said in a calm yet strong voice.
"You were played… and played real good…" Michael started. "That God, or Demon or, whatever the fuck it was you saw just used you… just like you used other people after receiving your power." He said, but he continued on. "Why? I don't know, and that's what we were trying to find out… but you were suffering, probably just as bad as me, Kotori, Origami and everyone else; and that… thing… took advantage of you at your most vulnerable state. Just like that cuck-ducer tried to do, but in a different way."
Miku found her eyes slightly widening from the rant Michael was going on, but she didn't get a chance to speak.
"That power you have… your voice… is fucking beautiful. Think about it. Yes, the voice granted by your Angel gave you power; and yes, you gave into it. But it couldn't exist without the one you have inside… that same angelic voice whose passion touched the hearts and souls of so many people. Then after that, your world crumbled before you, and you tried to salvage it; but it became too much and you got trapped underneath all the rumble for a very long time. Everyone you thought were your fans and friends turned their backs on you, so you panicked and ran away. If I was there, maybe I…"
Michael stopped himself as he began to show a little more emotion he intended too, but what his sentence implied made Miku's heart swell. It was probably true too. If he did move here a bit sooner, knowing she still had one fan left, maybe she never would have fell off the deep end as hard as she did. Someone would have been there to try and catch her.
If she still has any doubts of the "act", they were all gone now. Despite his mouth not having a filter and he could come across as an asshole because of it, it DID come from a genuine place… He really did care…
And if not for her gift… she never would have met him…
Michael took in a breath and removed his hand from her shoulder before continuing. "Look… you may have done those things… but that wasn't you." He said in a calmer tone. "You were in a very dark place, seeing the world in a negative light. But voice or no voice… your still Miku, the brave little girl who wanted to change the world for the better, using her gift that was given to her by some higher power the day you popped out of your mothers legs. And if you think you should be punished for fighting demons in your head telling you the kick the chair from under you…" Michael leaned in a bit closer before finishing with: "Fuck. That."
Miku couldn't take it anymore. The emotions bubbling inside her burst and she almost immediately hugged Michael tightly, catching him by surprise. He began to panic… not that hugging her was a bad thing, mind you. Her huge breasts crushed against him as she gave into her emotions, which was another dream come true for both Mikey and his hormones. The real reason he panicked was this could be bad for Miku's image. He heard it in anime and wasn't sure if it was exaggerated or not, but Pop Idols were not recommended to be seen with other guys in public. Some corporate strategy or something…
That's not even mentioning what the student body would end up saying about his ever-growing harem…
"M-Miku, we're still outside." Michael told her.
"I don't care." Miku quickly said, still holding him tight and her head on his shoulder. "If anyone does come, I'll just pose and tell them to go away."
'That's not what I'm worried about…' Michael thought internally. "You do remember your giant piano is stored inside me, right?" He added out loud.
"I know… and I'm glad it is." Miku said, softly. From her actions, she could feel his body heat, the shape of his muscles… and the beat of his heart against her own. She slightly parted from him so she could make eye contact, but still kept her arms around him. "Darling… it's because of you…" she continued. "You showed me I was wrong. That when when I controlled people, it made me no different than the ones who ignored me. You helped me find myself again, find my passion again; even after I pushed you away and turned your friends against you, you pushed back. Telling me not what I wanted to hear, but what I needed to hear." Miku kept talking, now going on a rant of her own.
Michael couldn't help but lose himself in Miku's eyes. Before him, holding him close was a girl with purplish silk-like hair (that made her smell like lily flowers fittingly enough) and smooth white skin that never missed maintenance… combined with a voluminous figure, she was no doubt a beautiful girl.
"You showed me I didn't need my powers anymore. I didn't need to force people to be my fans," It was around here Miku subconsciously (or on purpose, it was hard to tell) began moving her head closer to Michael's, and her tone got lower. "For I… still had… one…"
Miku and Michael drew closer to each other, moving in for what could only be described as more-than-generous good-bye kiss…
"Ahem." Both Miku and Michael turned in the direction of the sound in shock, seeing the door was open.
Inside of it, was Tohka.
"Just what do you think your doing?" The Princess demanded the two of them, though it appeared directly sightly more to Miku. It wasn't just her that appeared however; Yoshino, Kaguya and Yuzuru were also behind her, though they didn't look as mad.
"Oh, Tohka! Long time no see!" Miku greeted in a cheerful tone, completely oblivious to the other Spirits mood. Mike could have sworn he saw Tohka's eye twitch twice in a rapid session, but couldn't be certain.
"Fu-Fu… how bold. Nice guts to bear your feeling out in the open on mine and Yuzuru's property." Kaguya said. Michael gave the twins a dirty look that asked 'excuse me?', but before he could verbally ask that, Yuzuru then spoke.
"Warning. Please refer to the following document," began Yuzuru, lifting up what appeared to be a signed contract in her left hand. "And submit the appropriate application regarding visiting rights to Michael." She said as she then held up an application form with lots of bullet points and checkboxes and such.
SNATCH!
Mike snatched both documents out of Yuzuru's hands before she could react, with did cause her poker face to crack and show surprise. The same with Kaguya who was standing right next her. The Sealer looked over both forms of paperwork, his eyes were shown rapidly reading back and forth downward, then switched papers to read the other one… stopping at the bottom of the signed contract.
"… You forged. My signature?!" He asked, annoyedly. Almost yelling as he flipped the contract over to show the twins, but it was also shown to the fourth wall this way.
Not only that, they didn't even spell it right. They misplaced the "E" and "A" towards the end of Michael's name, and put in a "K" instead of "C"; spelling "Mikheal" instead.
Yoshino was blushing from the whole scene. And Yoshinon, Yoshino's puppet, began speaking. "Hoo-hoo-hoo! The Lecherous Leecher strikes again, using his power over women to try and seduce a celebrity out in the…" that's when Yoshino herself covered her puppets mouth, stopping it before it said something embarrassing. The puppet squirmed and waved his hands wildly, but it was no good.
Michael deadpanned to the audience, not having the energy to say anything.
"Well, I'm glad your all here." Miku said to the group of Sealed Spirits. "I wanted, to apologize to you all at once." Her statement of her intentions made the other girls' perplexed. "I'm sorry… I was in a bad place… I shouldn't have took it out on you…" Miku bowed her head, further surprising the girls.
"Um… its okay…" Tohka said, not expecting Miku to apologize. She didn't remove her wariness about Miku however.
"Y-Yeah… I don't remember much from that." Said Kaguya.
"Confirmation… memory is a bit fuzzy." Said Yuzuru.
"But that doesn't explain why your so close to Michael!" Tohka said after the shock of Miku's sudden apology left.
"Isn't it obvious? I was giving Darling a good-bye kiss." Miku said simply and without any shame.
Tohka flinched. "A… good-bye kiss?" She asked. "W-why would you do that?"
"What's the problem? Don't you kiss Darling all the time?" Miku asked, again with no shame.
Tohka's cheeks reddened. "T-T-That's different!" She said in an embarrassed tone.
Miku took her embarrassment the wrong way. "Have you never tried it? Why not now?" She asked, getting gitty and excited. This only served to make the other girls redden, and of course Tohka herself to redden deeper. "It's perfect! I'll finish my kiss with Darling, then you and me can! Kill two birds with one stone!"
"Wh-Why would you kill birds with a stone?!" Tohka asked, not understanding the slang, but she still sounded nervous from Miku's offer.
"Oh, here's a better idea! I'll kiss all of you, and send them all to Darling when I kiss him! It'll be a massive indirect kiss!" While that's not exactly how indirect kisses work, Miku got even more excited by the thought of it. She leaned forward, closed her eues and puckered her lips… a bit over-dramatically, but the effect sent Tohka running with a look that could only be described as fear. "Aww, don't run away! It'll be fine!" Miku said in a dreamy voice after opening her eyes to see Tohka fled, but chased after her after closing her eyes and puckering her lips again.
"No! No! Don't follow me! Get away from me!" Tohka demanded as she ran away, but Miku either ignored her or was too much in a dream-like state to hear the request. This eventually turned into a massive game of Marco Polo, but no one was willing to call Polo and lure Miku in their direction. Her flirtatious actions caused the other Spirits to run away scared, and with Miku running after them.
Michael just watched them blankly, then looked up to the roof. "Hmm… 4 stories high, about a 40 foot drop…" He muttered to himself. "… not high enough." And with that, he rapidly ripped up the papers from the Twins he was still holding, letting them fall or be taken by the breeze before walking into his house. Knowing them, Kaguya and Yuzuru probably made copies anyway…
"Play nice, children…" He added in a mutter before closing the door behind him.
XXX
After the girls calmed down on their own and had dinner, with Michael also being the only one to clean up since Kotori had not returned yet, he finally retired to his room for a well-deserved rest. Thankfully summer vacation started tomorrow, so no school for a bit.
As he laid in his bed, he glanced over to his dresser next to him. Leaning up, he reached for the one of the drawers before opening it and picking something out. Opening his hand, it was shown the item he had gotten.
It was that strange blue flash drive-looking thing he found in DEM shortly after Miku joined him.
-FLASHBACK-
"LA-LA-LA!"
"*deadpans* There she goes aga-…"
"NOT LISTENING!"
"You need to grow u-…"
"I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"
Most of that was said at the same time between both Supernatural Pop Idol and Normal Teenage Boy, so it was harder to differentiate who was talking first. To add more insult, Miku, whom was stomping off akin to a child, was now covering her ears like a child not wanting to listen to their parents while STILL doing the "la-la-la".
"Ya know what, your not even a brat! Your a fucking child!" Michael said, trying to talk over Miku's la-las'. They began to walk past a door just in front of the second-to-last floor of the building's stairwell.
"Stupid, stupid, stu-…" Miku stopped. Oddly, the very second she passed by that door. She froze up for some reason, then slowly looked at the door in question.
"Thank you, she's unplugged…" Michael muttered as he waked past her, but she didn't move any further, just kept her eyes locked in that door. Once Michael took a few steps up to the final stairwell, he noted Miku still had not moved and looked back from his position. "… Whatsamatta? Got stage fright again?" He jabbed as he was still annoyed with her childish behavior.
Unlike their other conversations before, she did not respond to his statement… her eyes were glued to that door like a cat to a ball of yarn. "Miku?" He asked. Then he came down off the stairs and looked at the door Miku was so focused on. Was her Spirit Sense tingling, as he dubbed it when Tohka sensed the Yamai Twins?
The door was marked: Reiryoku Testing Lab.
Michael blinked at the door… Reiryoku. Wasn't that the name of Spirit Mana? That sounded like a place Tohka could be kept, whoever was behind all this probably experimenting on her like Area 51 and aliens. 'But… that Wizard said Tohka was on the top floor…' He thought.
The floor in question was literally the next one, the final boss of the tower so to speak, so why would Tohka be in there? Not only that, this room's door didn't have a keycard lock on it, it was just a normal door. So what was the point of giving them a keycard? Was it a trick?
No… that's not how Miku's power works. That Wizard had no earplugs like Tohka did, nor did she have any territory at her disposal or even a massive power level like Kurumi or Mana, so it would be otherwise impossible for said Wizard to resist the Diva's power. Speaking of which, Miku definitely felt something in there.
Michael walked in front of her and puts his hand on the doorknob, only for it to be unlocked and open the rest of the way by itself. It was a bit of a dark room from the cameras angle. Creepy. "… Miku. Stay right behind me." Michael said. "And don't. Touch. Anything."
From Michael's voice, she came back to her senses. She spoke in a low tone. "Stop telling me what t-…"
"Shhh." Michael cut her off with an index finger quickly to his lips, leaving Miku only to blink once in perplex… did he just shush her? Michael went into the room, with Miku following behind begrudgingly.
Turns out, the room WAS dark. Nothing a light switch couldn't handle that Mike used his free hand to feel along the wall to flip it. Despite this, only a low humming of the overhead lights were heard along with very little light provided from them. This room had either not been maintained properly, or was left this way for quite some time.
"… Tohka?" Mike couldn't help but call out, but no answer came. Having no choice, he journeyed deeper into the room, he and Miku going past a bunch of dusty desks and computers. It gave off an uneasy vibe like an abandoned lab in certain types of movies, only creepier and in real time. Miku walked past a desk immediately after Michael did…
"Squeak, squeak!"
"EEEEEEEEEK!" Miku jumped at the sudden appearance of a large rat that darted across the floor, freaking Miku out and causing her to take a step back in recoil. When she did, she accidentally bumped into a desk, this one with a few test tube kits…
CRASH! SHATTER!
Miku gritted her teeth and looked at the damage she indirectly caused by craning her neck. Michael also looked behind him once she screamed, and of course stared at the destruction. Thankfully those tubes were empty…
"… What did I just say!" Michael asked in a raised whisper.
"That wasn't me! I didn't touch anything!" Miku claimed as she looked back at Michael, also in a raised whisper.
"Oh, excuse me. It was your caboose after seeing Mickey's true form." Michael said with snark, still using a whispering volume.
Miku went silent, but then looked a little mad at Michael. "Are you calling me fat?" She asked, still whispering as well.
"Only here, and back there, now be quiet!" Michael whispered, slapping his chest with his free hand upon 'here' then bringing it around to smack one of his ass-cheeks when saying 'back there'.
Since the word 'fat' should not be used towards a woman regardless of its context, Miku justifiably got offended. "UGH!" She scoffed, still maintaining the low volume. "You are the worst fan, Ever!"
"And I love you too, Izayoi Grande!" Michael answered in a very sarcastic way, still at a lower volume. They both continued to bicker, their faces getting closer… that's when they noticed it, at the same time, out of the corner of their eyes…
They both stopped arguing, then slowly turned their heads in unison to an even larger test tube. This one filled with water or some other kind of liquid substance. Ya know how some movies have still bodies in these types of tubes?… That's exactly what was before them, a humanoid figure was inside connected to wires or something, it was hard to tell due to both the darkness of the room and the murky water inside.
Well… humanoid; but it had huge proportions, not looking totally human in a pretty dress like a Spirit does… no dress actually, just a large individual. The water wasn't bubbling, so either the entity was dead or just unconscious.
Something inside Miku told her to back the hell off. She didn't know what it was, but it came to her the moment she set eyes on this thing, and took a few steps away. Michael however, looked with curiosity, slowly stepping towards the trapped being and stopping before its glass containment.
He squinted his eyes while looking at it. The tube was a bit foggy, perhaps due to condensation or something, he was no Scientist. He wiped the dirty tube with his free hand with a single swiping motion to make it clearer to see inside. However, the murky liquid and darkness of the lab still made it hard to make out what it was, making it impossible to know what exactly was in there. It's obviously been here for quite some time.
"What the…?" He asked while still trying to have his eyes figure out what he was looking at. As his free hand slid off on its own, it pressed up against a pad of some kind that was connected to the tube. One of his fingers ended up pressing a button on it…
BEEP! WHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRL!
The sudden sound from what he touched made Michael jump and back off. Not only that, the keypad that he touched lit up like the ones on an ATM, revealing what exactly he touched, and a large machine directly next to the tube that was unseeable in the darkness also lit up. Both teens were frozen from the sight, neither having expected anything to happen.
"What did you just say!" Miku asked, trying to talk over the loud whirling of the machine.
"That wasn't me! I didn't touch anything!" Michael claimed as he looked back at Miku, also in a raised tone.
"Oh, sorry. It must've been your fat, greasy, American fingers." Miku said sarcastically… this felt very déjà vu.
The machine kept whirling and performing whatever task it was functioned to do, in fact the tube it was connected reacted as well. Remember those wires connected to the form in the chamber? Well now they were glowing… literally. Something was being sucked out of the life form, and said life form was jerking because of it. It appeared to be a reaction however, as it still made no attempts to get out of its prison.
The whirling and humming sound continued, seemingly getting louder with each passing second, and it showed no signs of stopping! The machine was also starting to light up and vibrate violently, which is hopefully what it was programed to do. Otherwise, it appeared it was going to explode!
Instinctively, Mike pushed Miku aside and got in front of her. "W-What are you-?" She tried to ask.
"Stay behind me!" Michael cut her off and spoke in a protective voice, giving her a direct order as the machine continued to act violently. He didn't know if this help her, he still had no idea what he was doing as the other powers aside from Sandalphon he had sealed inside of him only seemed to respond when he's in danger. Maybe Camael's healing flames could heal him if that thing blows up. At least Miku wouldn't get hurt… too badly perhaps depending on the strength of the blast.
…
…
…
DONG!
The machine stopped, giving off a sound reminiscent of when a microwave or a toaster oven is done cooking something.
"BATTLELOG, COMPLETED." Said a computerized female voice from the very same machine that was going crazy seconds ago. Then with a ker-chuck sound like a vending machine dropping a can of soda, an object was dispensed into a small tray in the center of the machine. "THANK YOU." The machine added, before going silent.
The two teens didn't move right away, but Michael approached the machine after a few seconds with Miku trailing behind him. He looked into the tray to see what "snack" was provided…
It was a blue flash drive of some sort, but it had a much different shape. Whereas most flash drives were rectangle, this one was a perfect square. It also had a square-shaped symbol in the center. "… All that for a flash?" Michael asked out loud, as the way the machine was operating seemed way too intense for a normal transfer device. Regardless, he slowly picked it up and looked at it in his hand.
Huh… it felt tingly in his palm. Maybe because it was freshly made?
"What is th-…?" Miku asked, looking over Michael's shoulder at the device. She went to go touch it…
SPARK!
"HISS-OW!" The very second Muki touched it however, she instead felt a zapping sensation course all through her body from her fingers. She also dropped the drive and it bounced against the floor a few times before stopping.
You'd think someone would ask if Miku was okay…
"Will you be careful!" Michael said. To his credit, he did sound concerned for her, he just used different words.
"It's not my fault!" Miku said while she moved her fingers around to shake the pain off. "That thing zapped me!" She complained, pointing to the offending object now on the floor.
"Yeah… because flash drives generate electricity beforeinsertion…" Michael sarcastically remarked, which to be fair was true. It was like plugging in a vacuum into an outlet on a wall. The vacuum plug only generates electricity when connected to the outlet. Its the same idea for flash drives connecting to computers, if slightly different.
Michael picked up the drive Miku dropped and put it in his pocket. Might come in handy later. "Tohka's not here. Top floor it is." He added, walking around Miku to exit the room.
Miku glared at him as she watched him go. "Obviously not, genius. This was a waste of time." She said, following Michael out.
-END FLASHBACK-
He probably should have shown this thing to Kotori, but it still felt odd. Thinking back to the fight with Inverse Tohka, when he re-manifested Sandalphon or used more of its or the other Spirits power, this device seemed to heat up in his pocket. Not to the point of burning a hole through it, of course; but it was still very strange. It's almost like it responded to Spirit Power…
"Whatcha got there?"
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Michael screamed like a girl while holding the drive in his hands and Close to his chest as if he was a girl being caught undressing. Looking in the direction of the sound…
Wait… jazz music?
Kurumi was sitting in his window, her hair and parts of her Astral Dress blowing in the nights gentle breeze. Like usual, she had a smile on her face, that same clock-eye staring at him… was it just him, or was there something oddly sexy about it?
"Can't any of you knock?" Michael jabbed her (and referencing her powers) after calming down, but still kept the device; or as the vending machine called it 'Battlelog'; hidden.
"Hehe…" Kurumi gave her signature gentle laugh before pushing herself off the window ledge and into the room itself. "Where's the fun in that?"