Over the past few weeks, there had been a large rise in the number of units forming. Kickstarted by the divine reveal of Divinity Heaven, units such as the graceful Serendipity or the cute Bubblegum*Asterism had quickly followed.
And now, after a busy October forming and maintaining units, Halloween was quickly approaching.
"Don't they usually hold a party here?" Usagi asked, grinning. "I can't wait to go~."
The usual five were gathered in the cafeteria, discussing the upcoming holiday.
"Is Halloween fun? Like... proper Halloween?" Minori asked and Usagi nodded.
"It is! You go around and knock on people's doors and ask for sweets. And if they don't..." Usagi's smile became twisted. "You can trick them."
"Just make sure you don't do anything too bad," Hikaru said.
"Aww~."
"Not only that but look," Saki said, holding up her phone. "MeguruMeguru will be featured at a Halloween festival happening in town. If we play our cards right-" She smirked. "-We might even be able to get close to them."
"...MeguruMeguru?" Usagi asked, tilting her head.
Saki sighed.
"They're another unit," Claire explained, "A duo unit who are rather popular."
"They're one of Ella-chan's favourite units, you know!"
"Ella-chan never really spoke to me about idols. It was always you or the others."
"Jeez..." Saki muttered. "Well, have you at least heard of Healing Beauties?"
Hikaru nodded. "One of my little sisters was obsessed with it."
"After performing in many live shows last year for it, MeguruMeguru were cast in this year's season as Healing Tropical and Healing Marine."
"Woah...!"
"Magical girl toku is quite different from their usual style," Claire noted, "But I suppose at least they're returning to their roots with a Halloween event."
"So... they're a gothic unit?"
"Correct," Saki said, "They have the theme of monsters."
Usagi's eyes began sparkling. "Monsters? That's amazing! Hey, what's everyone dressing as for Halloween?"
"...I wonder...!" Minori turned to Saki. "Hey, hey, Saki-pyon, what do you think I'd look good as?"
"You'd look pretty good as anything."
"Saki-pyon?" Usagi asked, "What a cute nickname~."
"Only Minorin can call me that."
"Aw~. Downer."
"If we're going, we might as well use this opportunity," Claire said, "Individually, MeguruMeguru are great idols but together they shine even brighter. If we're starting up units ourselves, we'd be best gaining pointers from them. Right?"
Usagi nodded. "Right! As expected of our reliable leader~."
"...Leader?"
"It's good with you, right? You're an amazing idol and cool and smart so you'd be a better leader than the scatterbrained me and the quiet Hikaru. We decided that together last night."
Claire blushed. "You two... as long as I'm not the centre."
"You're sure?" Usagi asked. She grinned. "That's okay with me, then."
Usagi quickly looked over to Saki's phone again.
MeguruMeguru...
If she wanted Bubblegum*Asterism to be like her beloved eclipse, learning from other units would be important.
She'd make the most of this opportunity.
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"There are so many Halloween decorations!" Minori exclaimed as the five walked through the festival venue. "I hoped it'd be like this!"
The entire venue felt Halloween-like, from top to bottom. There were decorations strung along, along with everyone wearing their costumes. Minori was dressed as a cute witch, dragging a plush snail around as her 'assistant' (she couldn't bring Susan Chair along, so for her, this was the second best thing). Saki was a pirate, with a fitting hat and a confident expression that sold her role. Meanwhile, Bubblegum*Asterism had come in coordinated magical girl outfits, each in their respective colours.
"Halloween's so much fun," Usagi said, "You're gonna love it, Minori-chan!"
"Mhm!" Minori cheered, skipping forward. "So many costumes and decorations - it's amazing!"
"So... what should we do first?"
"Hmmm..."
"There's apple bobbing over there," Usagi suggested, "Or maybe... we could look at the stuff they're selling. Or..." She furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't know."
"There's so much," Hikaru agreed, "I wonder..."
"You're all missing the obvious," Saki said. The others turned to her and she smirked with a dark expression. "There's a haunted house right there, you know."
"Hey, Saki-chan, isn't that a bit...?" Usagi asked, a bead of sweat rolling down her face.
"What are you, scared?"
"I'm not scared! I'm just - okay, I'm maybe a little scared but, but...!"
"We should try it!" Minori chirped and Usagi paled.
"Are you sure...?"
"It looks super fun~!"
Claire giggled. "I think this will end up quite interesting."
"Gah! Not you too, Claire-chan!"
"If you don't want to, you don't have to," Hikaru said, "We can wait outside if you want."
Usagi shook her head. "It's okay. If Saki-chan can go in... I can too! Being scared is Aikatsu too!"
"..." Hikaru looked at her hand. She clenched it and furrowed her eyebrows. "I'll come too, then."
Usagi grinned. "We can do it! For Bubblegum*Asterism!"
"For Bubblegum*Asterism!"
"Ohh!" They cheered together.
The five approached the large house. The exterior was dark and broken down, with similar decorations to the rest of the event. The weather was cloudy and dark, only adding to the atmosphere.
"...Scary," Usagi muttered.
"Isn't this just another adventure?"
"...Adventures aren't scary."
Saki raised an eyebrow and Minori beamed.
"Let's do this!"
Usagi took a deep breath as she walked in. She could do this, she could do this...
She had to be strong! For Bubblegum*Asterism's sake!
"Hooray, hooray, me," she muttered, looking at the floor. If she couldn't see anything then-
Something cold touched her shoulder.
"Aah!"
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"Wah... that was horrible," Usagi complained, as the five walked out. She was swaying from side to side, pale. Hikaru smiled awkwardly.
"Are you okay, Usagi-chan?"
"Ugh..."
Hikaru patted Usagi on the back. "There there, Usagi-chan."
"It was amazing," Minori said, "I loved it so much. Thank you, Saki-pyon."
"See, this is why we're a unit."
"Mhm!"
Saki smiled cooly, crossing her arms and trying to hide that she was shaking. Minori giggled and Claire pushed her hair behind her ear.
"That was fun."
"Right?"
"You're so brave, Claire-chan," Hikaru said and Claire giggled.
"That's good, isn't it? There's no good in all three of us being scared." She winked. "I'll protect you two."
"Claire-chan...!" Usagi gushed, pulling puppy eyes. She hugged her tightly. "Please protect us!"
"There there~."
Claire patted Usagi on the head, comforting her and Hikaru leaned in, awkwardly joining the hug.
"...Hey, does anyone else hear something?" Usagi asked.
"It's music," Hikaru said, "Someone's... singing?"
Eyes bright, Usagi pulled away from the hug. "Let's go listen!"
Like that, the three walked over the source of the sound.
In the soft gentle breeze, I've seen it all before
I want to find it - something new!
Just who's lying out there?
What will I look like tomorrow?
Day by day I'm slowly changing
But I'll still hold these memories close.
As the three came closer, a girl with peach coloured hair was found dancing. The girl wore a sparkly purple dress decorated in flowers with enchanting wings behind her.
Claire's cheeks turned pink and her eyes sparkled. "She's adorable...!"
"...She feels kind of familiar," Usagi said, "She's super cute but I feel like I've seen her before...?"
"That's Oshiro Yui, isn't it?" Minori asked. "The fairy of Aikatsu."
"...Adorable...!" Claire continued and Hikaru giggled.
"The fairy of Aikatsu - that's amazing."
"Seeing Yui-chan in real life - we're lucky," Saki said, "Really lucky. We even got to see the end of a performance."
Usagi smiled. She took a deep breath and went on her tiptoes, waving widely.
"Oshiro Yui-chaaaan!"
Hikaru and Saki froze.
"U-Usagi-chan!"
Usagi grinned as Yui turned to face them. Her makeup was magical too, with pastel colours and glitter on her eyes. Usagi skipped forward.
"Hi! I'm Kazami Usagi, a first-year at Celestial Academy! Your voice is amazing and I love your costume too."
Yui smiled brightly. "Thank you! I'm a flower fairy~ but it's not a costume. I'm just being myself."
"Woah."
"I like your costume too though! You're a magical girl, right?"
"Mhm! Me and my friends have been watching anime together so it seemed like a good idea~!"
A bead of sweat fell down Saki's face. "Sometimes I wonder how she does it."
"Are you here by yourself?" Usagi asked, "Or... or... or are there other idols here?"
"I'm waiting for Fukuyama Yoshi-chan and Nanatsuki Asuka-chan," Yui said, "They're my best friends."
"Fukuyama Yoshi and Nanatsuki Asuka?" Usagi asked. She tilted her head then turned back to the others. "Do you know who they are?"
"That's them!" Saki shouted, "MeguruMeguru! That's the people!"
"Woah! Lucky!" Usagi turned back to Yui and smiled. "I'd love to meet them too!"
"Hm?"
"That's okay, right?"
Yui placed a finger to her lip. "I probably shouldn't drag strangers over."
"I promise I'm trustworthy!"
"Hmm... Why do you want to see them?"
Usagi's smile faded. "I started a unit recently. I want us to be successful - I don't want to drag the others down with me! - and I heard MeguruMeguru was a really good unit. I thought I could learn from them."
Yui closed her eyes and furrowed her eyebrows, considering. "Hmm... well... you're lucky they're not Sachiko-chan. They'll probably want to help out. Right, Asuka-chan?"
Usagi's eyes widened.
Out of all the idols she could run into - she ran into one of Hanabusa Sachiko's friends?
"It's MeguruMeguru!" Minori exclaimed, clasping her hands together. Usagi jumped.
"MeguruMeguru?" She whispered, turning her attention to the figures who had appeared next to Yui from the crowd. They had always been lingering close but were now seemingly joining the conversation. One small, pale girl with long dark hair - partly tied up in a ponytail. Next to her was a taller girl, with curly orange hair tied in twin buns. The two were dressed in aquatic-themed outfits - Usagi guessed they were at least somewhat related to that healing tropical thing.
Without hesitation, the dark-haired girl held out a set of Aikatsu cards, face down.
"Choose one."
"...Huh?" Usagi asked and the girl smirked.
"Don't question it."
Hovering her hand over the cards, Usagi bit her lip. She tapped a card.
"That one."
"Excellent." She held the card up. "The Demon's Message Skirt. 'A friendship will face great difficulty. Only through leaving your comfort zone will it stay together.'"
"...Huh?"
The ginger girl grinned, leaning on her partner. "Asu-chan tells fortunes. That's yours."
"You told my fortune through an Aikatsu card?" Usagi asked.
"Didn't you ever listen to our old conversations?" Saki asked, "It's one of the Seventh Moon's trademarks!"
"The Seventh Moon? That's - the Kiratuber Ayame-chan likes, right? That's... her? But she's also MeguruMeguru?"
The fortune-teller smiled cooly. "Nanatsuki Asuka - one half of MeguruMeguru, formerly known as the Seventh Moon."
"And I'm Fukuyama Yoshi," the ginger said, smiling and placing her hands on Asuka's shoulders. "The other half."
"Together we make MeguruMeguru - the idol unit that will take over the world!"
"It's an honour to meet you in person," Claire said, "I'm a huge fan."
"Wah, thank you so much!"
"We heard you wanted advice on units, correct? Perhaps we could guide you," Asuka said. She held up the cards, fanning them out in front of her mouth.
Yoshi nodded. "There's a unit showcase happening in a couple of weeks. You should go - Asu-chan's fortunes can help you get a ton of fans!"
Minori's eyes lit up. "Please tell my fortune! I want to improve my unit too!"
The group gathered around Asuka, clamouring for her to tell their fortune and other stories about the unit.
However, Usagi's attention was on something else. A pink fairy girl who was watching the gothic duo with a smile. After a few seconds, Yui turned to Usagi.
"Usagi-chan?"
"You said you knew Hanabusa-senpai."
"We're friends from our old school," Yui explained, "We've had our ups and downs but she's a good friend."
"Does that mean you know eclipse?" Usagi blurted out, standing on her tip-toes. "As in... know know?"
"They're both my friends."
Usagi took a deep breath. "I... I love eclipse a lot! They're my favourite idols ever and... I want to know more about them. So..." She bowed. "Please tell me!"
Yui placed a finger on her lip. "What they're like huh..." she giggled. "Brings back memories."
"What kinds?" She paused. "If it's okay to ask."
Yui brushed her hand through her hair and looked to the sky. "I'm okay with telling you if you're okay hearing it."
"I want to know! If it makes me a better idol; if it means my unit can be as great as theirs-!"
"When I first met Mai-chan, they didn't get along."
Usagi's eyes widened.
"They... didn't?"
"When they first formed eclipse, they even had a giant argument," Yui said, smiling bittersweetly. "Even though their performance was so strong their relationship was so rocky. It was a mess that no fairy spell could fix. No amount of love injections either!"
Usagi bit her lip, shaking slightly.
The temperature felt colder.
"Yet... they did it. Somehow, they fixed everything. They took the stage and created miracles and then they-" she stopped herself and gave a giggle, covering her mouth. "-I shouldn't say that.
A lot must have happened that not even I knew about. But they're happy so I'm happy."
"...I'm not sure I understand."
"Would you like me to cast a spell on you so you do?"
"Why didn't they like each other?"
"I don't really know. Sachiko-chan can be pretty secretive," Yui said. "But that's the past. I don't think it matters anymore."
Usagi's lip started bleeding slightly. "...I always thought... they had the perfect relationship."
"Perfect's a weird word," Yui said. "What you saw on stage wasn't a lie. It's just - no unit can be perfect. Unless you're from a fairytale." She winked and stuck out her tongue.
"I... guess you're right." She forced a smile. "Thank you, Yui-chan."
"Just passing on knowledge from one eclipse fan to another," Yui said. "They're amazing, aren't they?"
Usagi nodded.
Somehow, eclipse's performance seemed more and more unbelievable every single time she thought about it. It made both more and less sense at the same time.
Just like a real eclipse, she was beginning to think the unit was a rare miracle.
Something she wasn't even sure she'd ever see something like it again.
She... wanted to know more.
She wanted to see them together!
But... even she knew that was impossible.
"Hey, Usagi-chan!" Minori yelled, waving. Usagi broke out of her thoughts and looked up.
"Minori-chan?"
"MeguruMeguru are going to be performing soon," Hikaru said. "...Are you okay? Your-" She pointed to her lip.
"Huh? Oh." She wiped the blood away. "Let's go watch the performance." She grinned, walking over and brushing shoulders with Hikaru.
"Mhm. Let's go, then."
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Asuka and Yoshi held their cards out.
The Neon Bat Coord.
The Neon Oni Coord.
Halloween collection coords for 2021. Despite their differing themes, their aesthetics matched well.
The two made eye contact and smiled confidently.
"For the best Halloween ever! Around and around, the world revolves around us!"
The two walked out onto a neon, Halloween themed stage. Trendy yet Halloween-ish - perfectly suited for the duo.
Everybody, clap your hands
We're only getting started
Everybody, sing your song
Your fortune is looking bright
Their unit aura appeared, large and strong.
Oh woah oh woah woah woah yeah
Oh woah oh woah woah woah yeah!
Oh woah oh woah woah woah yeah
Let's go!
It's raining outside? Don't mind
I'm sure it's just a sign
The world keeps turning
Your future is laid out for you!
They performed Pop Live.
But maybe it can change,
Nobody's really certain
But no matter what you face
Make sure to endure with a smile!
A smile?
A smile!
Next, they performed Cool Live.
Your world might not always be fortunate
But as long as you have friends you'll be fine
Yui's eyes widened slightly. "The choreography changed...!"
I'm with you
You're with me
We'll conquer it together!
When the world is fortunate
Celebrate with me, won't you?
They performed Meguru Stardom.
Everybody, clap your hands
We're only getting started
Everybody, sing your song
Your fortune is looking bright
The audience broke out into applause.
"Their coordination was amazing," Claire noted, "Hinode-senpai was right."
"Hinode-senpai?" Minori asked, "She said something about them?"
Claire giggled. "Don't worry about it."
Not long later, the five walked out together and Usagi looked up to the sky.
There were some clouds in the sky, but not many.
"Hey, Claire-chan?"
"Hm?"
"...Do you think Bubblegum*Asterism will be a good unit?"
Claire smiled, also looking at the smile. "I like to think we'll be."
"What do you think makes a good unit?"
"...I don't really know. I never had many friends when I was younger," Claire said, "But we'll make it work."
Usagi smiled softly.
"I hope we can."
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A/N: Happy new year woooooo!
Tomorrow (dec 3rd) s2 will be a year old sniff.
Thank you for reading! I still have three days off before school again so I'm gonna try and get at least one more chapter done before then~ fufu
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