The massive themepark is probably the last place someone would expect to meet someone to discuss secret plans. But there was a reason why Utau suggested the place. It's big. It's crowded. And easy to hide from someone.
She arrived early, dressed in unusually casual attire for Utau: Simple blue jeans, a white t-shirt, short red jacket and black and white slouchy hat paired with sunglasses complete her 'disguise'. Well, she is not totally unrecognizable, but enough to not attract any crazy fans.
This is probably a crazy stupid idea that's gonna cost her; He's probably not even gonna show, and she's wasting her time. But she's gotta try, right? Afterall, she believed in him, and maybe it's about time she took that chance. Utau sits on a little wooden bench in a quieter part of the park, watching kids screaming and having fun on the various rides, checking her watch every so often.
"Utau chan, forget it! He's not gonna show! Dont trust anyone but yourself..And us!"
"Yeah, he will! I know he will! Believe in him, and Daichi-kun!"
It's Iru and Eru, arguing as usual.
It takes a minute for Kukai to show up, sure, but when he does he's carrying a large swirl of cotton candy, and a drink cup. He's got on street clothes as well - a light brown jacket, blue shirt, black pants and shoes, with Daichi riding in a lower leg pocket, barely peeking out. He walks over towards Utau and offers her the cotton candy. "Hey. Treat? It's pretty tasty, and good for hiding your face in a crowd." Apparently he'd been thinking about this as well.
"Sorry I'm a bit late - decided that I needed to take my time and not look like I was on my way anywhere, just in case." He sits down besides her, holding the drink on his leg, and puts one arm along the back of the bench. "Hey Eru, Iru. You two playing nice?" He's making a bit of small talk for the moment, waiting for Utau to work herself up to explaining what's going on, even though there's concern in his eyes.
"Kukai-kun! Daichi-kun! Hiii!!" Eru squeaks, leaping at Daichi to give him a hug. "Told ya so, Iru!"
"Hmph!" Iru just glares at Eru, looking the other way. "They'll mess everything up! Ya shoulda listened to me, Utau-chan! You shoulda taken that girl's X-egg! It's the only way!"
Mostly ignoring her guardian charas, Utau blinks at the sight of the cotton candy. She's never had any before. In fact she's never even been to a themepark before. But seeing Kukai again makes her happy, and that happiness is hard to hide.
It takes her a moment to collect her thoughts, reaching for the cotton candy, staring at it thoughtfully, then back at him. "You came..I wasn't sure if you would. Does that mean you believe me?" She's quiet a moment, picking at the cotton candy, a hundred thoughts going through her head. Where does she even start?
"I only came here once, when I just started out in my career, several years ago. Nearly got trampled by a mob of fans. I was shaken up so bad that I decided never to come back here again, which is why they'd never think to look for me here.."
"Until now. I..." She blushes, looking away, "Always wanted to come here, with a special someone.."
Daichi laughs, hopping up to give Eru a tight hug, then nods up to Iru and goes up to give the grouchy devil girl Chara a hug too!
Kukai smiles back at Utau and then nods. "Sure, Utau. Of course I believe you. I know things between us have been hard lately but I always believe you." He pats her back, letting his hand rest on her shoulder.
He looks around at the theme park, smiling softly. "I've been here once or twice. I loved the panda rides when I was little. But it was always my brothers bringing me. I haven't been here by myself or with anyone else in a while, except to patrol." He looks over at Utau for a moment, then stands up, offering her his hand. "C'mon. We could go to the Ferris wheel if you want?"
Iru just glares at Daichi, refusing to hug him. "This is stupid! I'm gonna go off on my own!" and she zips off, before Eru can stop her. "Iru-chan..." She murmurs sadly, but turns brightly to Daichi. "Let's go have some fun!"
Utau smiles a little at his response, and nods. "Thanks for that. I dont like the idea of asking for help. I thought I could do it myself. Mikoto and I were...So close to freeing him! But then Death Rebel came, and I couldn't stop him. He was just too strong." She looks at him curiously, "You said I should try a different way, that I should stop hurting people. Maybe you're right..Maybe with your help, I can."
She nods, grabbing his hand, climbing to her feet. "I've never been before, on any of the rides. A lot of people scream on that ferris wheel ride, but I'm sure it's not that scary." Utau's half smile is a challenging one. "What about you? Have you ever been scared on these rides? Have you ever screamed?"
Daichi awws, then nods to Eru, joining her and exploring the park!
Kukai shakes his head. "That Death Rebel guy is still at the top of my hit list, even if a couple people have joined him." An idea comes to him, but he stashes it away for a bit later as he looks at her seriously. "I'd really like that, Utau. If I can help you, I will. What all's been going on that I missed?"
He takes her hand and grins, heading towards the Ferris wheel for a moment before stopping, looking at her, his own smile just as challenging. "Whaat? The Ferris wheel is safe as houses. All of these rides are perfectly safe! Even the roller coasters! If I've ever yelled it's been in joy, not in terror. I bet you'd scream a long time before I would!"
Utau glances at Eru and Daichi, "Dont wander too far!" she cautions, but it looks like Iru's already wandered off on her own. Hmph, little brats! Well, whatever.
She nods again, "He seems to be the biggest challenge standing in my way. If I could overcome Death Rebel, then getting Ikuto out of there would be a lot easier. But that's the second problem. He's being mind controlled by..Some sort of high sound wave frequency, as far as Mikoto could tell."
"But it seems we were able to overcome it briefly. Between my singing and Mikoto's kiss. I guess she really loves him.." For a moment, Utau seems lost in her own thoughts. Watching the love between them was a powerful, heart stirring moment for her, a moment she could only dream of sharing with a certain someone.
"We almost got through to him! But then, something..Blocked us. They're using some sort of device, but we dont know what or where.."
Utau pauses in the serious talk, enjoying the sights and sounds of the themepark. "Mmm, this cotton candy is really pretty good." She smirks as she head towards the ferris wheel, not even hesitating at his challenge. "You forget who I am! I'm Utau Hoshina! I'm not afraid of anything..I'll bet you'll scream before I do! C'mon!" and she hops in one of the ferris wheel seats, waiting for Kukai to join her as she glances all the way up.."Wow, it goes pretty high up.."
Not that she's scared of anything! Afterall, she's flown before, with Iru..Right?
Daichi points at the funhouse. "This looks like it'd be fun!" He tugs Eru along into the funhouse. Distorted mirrors everywhere!
Kukai nods. "I've been thinking about how to fight DR for a while now - if I can keep him at range, I can pick him apart with soccer balls - or if I have some backup to fire on him, I can maybe keep that scythe busy long enough for someone else to wear him out. It'll have to be a group effort." He hmms. "I met Rena-san the other day and helped her carry a bunch of copper piping and things for a while. She's trying to build something that might counter the sound waves, but I don't know how that's going."
He smiles. "Yeah. It's a powerful emotion. It does a lot of things for a lot of people." He looks over at her as she seems focused on the cotton candy. "It might be easier to figure out what the device is, because if whatever Rena makes does work, the moment it turns off Ikuto will go back to being controlled. He may know where the machine is, though, if you can get him to normal for long enough to tell you."
He laughs. "Man I forgot how awful you are at being stealthy. C'mon, let's go!" He sits on the seat besides her - the booth is a little tight, but it's enough for the two of them to sit together - and the bar comes down over them as the Ferris wheel begins rotating, steadily rising into the air... and rising.. and rising...
Utau nods. "Rena-chan seems like she can be trusted. I barley know her, but she's ben a good friend. I dont know about that Chloe though..She's kinda a jerk. But..If we work together, I'm sure we can take him down.." She bites her lip as she listens about Rena's plan. Sounds pretty crazy, but..
"Maybe it'll work. I'm sure not even Ikuto knows where the device is, but I'll do some snooping around. What about the Guardians? Do you think they'll help us? I dont like having to rely on so many people, but...I'm running out of options."
Utau glances at the ground as it rapidly vanishes from view. Hey, this is nothing! She smiles as she holds onto the railing as the ferris wheel slowly picks up speed.
"I want to know everything about you, Kukai. I feel like we're always fighting so I dont get to talk. Tell me about your brothers. About the kind of life you live. Are you all into sports? Which is your favorite sport..I'll bet that's your dream, right?"
Kukai thinks about the last time he'd met Rena and Chloe and Utau. "Yeah. I saw Rena with Chloe and ... Chloe's nutty fangirl friend, in the shopping center. What is her name... Oh, right, and then the other day with that other girl who thought we were all crazy. ... Cathy. That's her name." He sighs. "Man it wears me out sometimes." He nods. "But if we get everybody together at once, I'm sure we can take him down. I just want him to not get a chance to use that scythe."
He hmms. "I'm sure the Guardians will help if you ask. I think everyone's busy in their own things, but we do still work together. And I dunno." He nods at her. "You rely on your audio mixer to make your music sound good, the people who play your instruments, the people who made that cotton candy not to have put something in it, the people who made your clothes and the people who check up on them - life is interconnected and we all work together."
He pats her shoulder as the Ferris wheel continues turning. "What you're asking is a big thing, but we've been looking for an opportunity to hit Easter and Eclipse where it hurts for a long time. Everyone will jump at the chance."
He huhs, leaning back in the booth for a moment. "Know about me? Wow. Ok. I'm kinda simple, really. I have four brothers - Kaido, the beef wall, Unkai, the wanna-be ronin, Shusui, the smart one, and Rento, the pretty one." He grins. "As for being into sports - yeah, of course. I love sports. But I'm having to realize that 'sports' is a wide category - skateboarding, soccer, basketball, cricket, tennis, snowboarding, billiards, ballroom dancing, golf, maybe even sport shooting." He grins at her. "I'm gonna be good at all of them one day. Maybe Olympian." He grins widely. "Maybe I like being in the spotlight, too."
He hmms. "The other thing is that as I get older I'm realizing I like writing. I have a really crappy memory, so I have to take notes constantly to get through school, and I've been making reports about the people I meet over the past few months, and as I do it more the more I like it."
He thinks. "I've been listening to music more recently - I listened to your album and liked it, and I've been listening to some other idols and people I've met. Some of it's good, some of it's crap." He looks over at her. "What else do you wanna know? What about you? What do you like?"
"Maybe..Maybe not. I'm taking a big risk. Since my little fiasco, smuggling Mikoto backstage and trying to break Ikuto out, Easter have become suspicious. They've cut down my visiting time with Ikuto, and they're working me harder, doubled my quota. I may have done a really stupid thing, Kukai..What if I've made things worse?"
She seems really worried all of a sudden. Maybe this really was a stupid idea! Maybe Iru was right..Maybe they'll kill Ikuto this time! It's around this time that the ferris wheel begins spinning faster and faster, reaching higher and higher. Suddenly, Utau is clutching his arm now, eyes widenned a bit anxiously as she glances below. Is she scared? Or just worried about the plight she's found herself in with Easter?
"Kukai.." She murmurs, but feels a bit calmer at the sound of his voice, trying to distract her wandering thoughts with his words. "Wow, it sounds like your household is pretty crazy. And you're the youngest? That's a lot of competition.."
He lists his interests and she's pretty impressed. "That's amazing! How do you have time for all of that!? But I'm sure you'd be great at all of those. You're pretty amazing in action..."
As for her, she shrugs, "Well, I started out in modelling when I was really young, but music has always been my biggest dream. I love singing, and when we were younger, Ikuto used to play the violin and I would sing in a duet. We were taken in by Tadase-kun's parents after my dad vanished, and my mom got sick and was admitted to the hospital. But there were good times.."
Utau sighs, staring thoughtfully at the sky, leaning her head against his shoulder. The ferris wheel is spinning faster and faster now but she seems calmer now. "I really like dancing too. Ballroom, mostly, but I'm getting into stuff like Hip Hop and Zumba too. We're trying to integrate more of my dancing into the music videos while I sing. But I'm hoping to get into acting eventually soon. I guess I dont get a whole lot of free time though."
Kukai shakes his head. "Honestly, Utau? I think they would have done it anyway. They're going to try to work you until they get every X-Egg in Tokyo, maybe the world, and when they decide you've served your purpose, they'll either throw you aside or expect you to take part in even worse things. I believe that. Sort of like this book everyone's looking for."
She's gripping his arm now, and he reaches over, holding her hand in his his, squeezing it reassuringly. "Getting scared by the ride, Utau?" He's grinning widely now. "And yeah, it's nuts sometimes. Everybody wants to watch something different or do something different or eat something different all the time. It's all in love, though."
He sighs. "I don't have time for all of it lately. I have time for soccer and basketball and maybe cricket and the rest I've had to do when I get the chance. I've spent so much time patrolling lately..." He yawns just thinking about it. "I've been trying to find this girl... That's actually something I want to ask you. Do you mind if I ask you something about someone you may know on your side? I gotta find her. It's important."
He listens to her talk about modelling and singing. "Oh wow. I'm so sorry about your parents. And that's how you knew Tadase-kun? I wish I'd known all you guys when you were younger, all of us, all the Guardians and you and everyone else." He shrugs and grins. "I guess it's good I know you now!"
He shifts, letting her rest on his shoulder comfortably. "Yeah? I bet you're a great dancer and fun to watch too. And acting? I know you've been on TV a few times, so that'd be a good progression." He erks for a moment as the Ferris wheel stops, leaving them hanging almost near the very top!
Utau sighs. "I suppose so..We're all expendable in the end. All I've managed to do so far, is buy some time. Even so, right now I'm not sure how to buy him time. If I go home, they'll be expecting X-eggs. All I can think of, is to reduce the numbers I take, not work so hard..Just pretend to be fighting the Guardians. At least until we can find a permanent solution."
He grips her hand and she laughs, "Afraid? No way! This is nothing! Although..Why are we stuck at the top like this?" she glances over the edge, nd cant help but feel the tiniest bit nervous, all strapped in like this. But it's okay, she's just being silly! No way she'll break before him!
"I know, you're busy being a fulltime hero too." she smiles, "Maybe I can come with you on some of your patrols. I'm not a hero by trade, but I'm always willing to try something new.."
She arches a brow. "Hmm, who are you looking for? A member of Easter, or Eclipse? I might know a little, there's been stuff going on lately.."
As for her parent, Utau just shrugs. "It was a tough spot, but we're strong so we survived. Tadase-kun and his parents helped a lot. But mostly we just had to build a thick skin and learn to survive on our own. We were shunned because of the shame of our mother marrying a poor musician who ran away rather than take responsibility and inherit the business. But I'm sure it'll all work out in the end..."
He hugs her with one arm, comforting her. "It's all you can do. We'll recover the ones that were taken after we get you and Ikuto free. At least, that's what I'm planning." He looks at her for a moment. "But.. I remember what you said about how much Easter helped you. So..."
He looks over the edge, then laughs. "I think it's something the operator does - he'll put ...." He blushes. "..couples.. into the top few spots and slowly turn the wheel so they have a good view of the area." He looks away for a moment, and then is thankful she offers to come out with him. "Actually yeah, that'd be really nice. It'd be good for you to get out and see how you can help people."
% He blinks, then huhs. "Still though, it's not right to punish kids for what their parents do... So your mom married for love, but your father didn't want to take over the family business? What kinda business is it? Do they expect you and Ikuto to run it now?"
He finally nods. "Yeah. Her name's Miss White. That's all I know about her, except she used some sort of gun-wand-thing to steal an X-Egg from a little girl I've been trying to take care of." He scratches the back of his head. "Funnily enough she's ok - it's a long story and it involves a unicorn - but I still want to get her X-Egg back."
Utau bites her lip, nodding slowly, "I dont like it, but..It's the best I can do. Yeah, it's thanks to Easter that I climbed this far in my career. But it wasn't all easy. I still had to work hard and use my talent. I owe them that much at least. Even so..."
She sighs, "I want to be free. I want..To be the kind of girl that you would be proud of, and not angry at all the time, because we have to fight each other."
Utau gives another nod when he asks about her parents. "She was in love with a musician, but her parents wanted her to marry a business man to run the business. He shamed the family..We should be the heirs of the company, after our grandfather passed away but instead, it seems that a partner of my late grandfather decided to marry into the company and take over instead."
As for what kind of business it is? Utau just chuckles, "Easter is a mega corporation, they own many food and clothing chain stores. But their biggest thing is running their own television station and music studio. But they also have a research division which is pretty big. They're powerful and they're everywhere.."
Ahh, and that brings them to Miss White. "I've heard of her. She's a member of Eclipse and leader of WPS if I recall. But I heard she fell out of favor recently over something. They have her using some experimental gun, trying to steal hearts eggs I guess, although I'm not sure of their ultimate plans, as they have me and Ikuto working on that case. I suspect they're just testing the gun's capabilities at the moment, but I'm not sure of their ultimate goals..But do you know what this girl's X-egg looks like? I could search for it in the laboratory. They used to capture and destroy X-eggs. But now, Nikaido-san and the other scientists are doing experiments on X-eggs, trying to see what they're capable of, and how they can be used to further their goals."
Finally, Utau peers back over the edge, then back at Kukai with a smile. "It's a beautiful view..But I like the view up here a lot better." she smiles, leaning in close, playing with his hair.
Kukai entirely doesn't hear the first part of what she says. Somewhere between her biting her lip and sighing he bluescreens, just staring at her. Then he shakes his head, and looks at her. "I... y'know, I'm already proud of you in a lot of ways. You know what you want and you're trying to get there, and you're trying to prevent as much bad in life as you can. And so far I've only been angry with you once or twice."
He blinks for a moment. "Wait. Wait, wait. Heirs of Easter? You should own Easter." He just stares at her, then laughs. "Oh wow. I am batting way above my average here. Um. Wow. I had no idea. And yeah, I knew Easter owned a lot of things, but... that's more than I expected."
Then it's to Miss White. "Leader of WPS..." He rubs his chin. "I think I know what that is... I've heard someone else reference it. Thank you. That's more than I had, and maybe I can find her with that." He shakes his head. "No, I don't know what it looks like or anything. I'll have to find it from her."
Kukai blinks, then grins, scootching in a little closer with her and looking at the blonde idol. "Well, I find it a lovely view as well." He keeps one arm around her, hugging her close and blushing as she plays with his hair.
"That's right." She nods, "We're the true heirs of Easter, but Hoshina-san has other plans..My mother was a weak fool, to marry him. How could she have given up on father so quickly? His death was never confirmed, only his violin. But it doesn't matter. All I wanted was my music. He can keep the rest. Maybe one day I wont even need Easter to continue my singing. Someday I'll stand on my own two feet.."
Hearing of his friend who lost her egg makes Utau seem a bit sad again, "I'm sorry about your friend. It's because of me that people are losing their dreams. But I'm sure with your help, and maybe the Guardians, I can make things right again. Somehow..Because I believe in you.."
Indeed, the view is very good from here. She smiles, closing her eyes as she wraps her arms around his neck. "Just once..I wanted to know what it was like.." Utau leans in just a bit closer, close enough that her breath is on his skin, her lips barely brushing his.
Kukai whews, shaking his head. "That's amazing." But then he frowns at her. "Hey, your mother married for love. It may not have been the best thing but people have to follow their dreams, you know?" He looks at her. "There may be more to the story we don't know, can never know. You may be more like him than you think, wanting to stand on your own feet with your music. Don't hate them."
He shakes his head. "No, it's because of Easter and Eclipse that all this is happening. It's not just you. We can make it right though."
He blushes again, looking down at her as she leans in. He'd thought she was still mad at him, that he'd broken her heart. But here she is, leaning in, and so he follows his heart and leans in as well. It's just for a moment, because just afterwards the Ferris wheel starts with a jerk, bouncing them apart, slowly wheeling around again...
Suddenly the ferris wheel starts again and she gasps, jerking back. Ugh! Talk about ruining a moment!
"Love. Heh." she laughs, "I don't know what that's all about, but I'm starting to understand. Being prepared to risk everything for someone you care about..? Maybe some day..Some day I'll learn the truth about them, and about my own feelings." Utau peers down below as the ferris wheel slowly reaches the bottom.
"What about you..Did you sort out your feelings?" It's a question she's afraid to ask, but one she needs to know. Her expression hardens again into that familiar, stubborn look she's known for.
"I get it, you're trying to figure things out too. But I'm not ready to give up so easily, either!"
Kukai Souma laughs and shrugs. "It's really complicated, so don't worry. I'm still trying to understand it." He nods, then hugs her gently again. "Just don't lose that firey spirit, huh? It's too good to give up."
He sighs, not sure if he wants to talk to her about his own adventures. Last time he nearly got perforated for it. "I'm working on it and trying to make things not crazy right now. Believe me, it's hard." His eyes flash green for for a moment and he grins. "Atta girl! Maybe when this is all over we can go out without having to talk about worries and things."
The wheel stops with them at the bottom, and Kukai helps Utau get off. "Was there anything else on your mind, or do you need to go? Or maybe walk around a little more?"
"Hmph." She folds her arms, "I wouldn't be where I am today if I gave up so easily! Just..Dont give up on me, either." Utau peers around as she says that, considering, "I have the day off, and I dont feel like working today."
Actually, Utau had worked pretty hard lately, collecting a lot of X-eggs and working that secret concert. She decides not to mention that part either. It wouldn't go down very well.
Still, glancing around, it seems there's lots of good rides to check out. "The roller coaster looks fun. I hear it's pretty scary." she smirks, "I'm sure you'll lose your stomach before I do!" she starts to head that way but takes her time as she's in no rush.
"Sometimes I think it'd be nice to walk around and not have fans chasing after you. Knowing that they're more in love with your music than in you. Sometimes it can be kind of lonely, being famous but having no close friends.." she murmurs as she walks slowly through the nearby gardens, enjoying the scenery.
"It must be nice, being a Guardian.."
Kukai grins and nods. "All right! That's what I like to hear. We won't give up on one another." He offers her an arm, completely oblivious to the undertones of her words.
Kukai snorts. "No roller coaster is gonna beat me! I won't scream at all." He looks over at her for a moment, then nods. "Well l dunno. I think you'd have fans no matter what you did." He sighs. "It's a lot of work. Taking care of people is a responsibility, and even though there are perks it's still hard. But people need help, and youma need bopping." He looks over at her. "Besides, part of you wouldn't be happy not being who you are."
Speaking of parts of them, Daichi is carrying a terrified Eru out of the fun house and trying to wake her up worriedly. "Eru? Are you OK?" He looks around for Iru too...