Chapter Text
/ Old Stage /
The next day dawned bright and cloudless. An surveyed the packed seats with a triumphant grin. “Clear skies! Full house! We’re set for success!”
(A perfect day for a perfect debut!)
(Surely, a large leap towards stardom.)
Kohane looked out the curtains. “So many people..." she gasped.
“That’s reassuring,” Toya agreed.
Akito stood silently, hands stiff at his sides. He took a deep breath before working the makeshift control panel backstage.
“Why so quiet?” the black-and-blue haired girl teased. “Don’t tell me you’re nervous, Akito~”
“D-Don’t be ridiculous,” he hissed.
“It's alright, everyone’s here to watch me! The star!” she continued with a laugh. “No one's gonna pay attention to a robot if you got stage fright."
“…Tch."
“Akito-kun, t-that might be her way of encouraging you,” Kohane said, trying her best to reassure him.
“Yeah, right,” he replied, sounding more agitated.
"Eep—!"
Toya furrowed his brows. The shorter boy grumbled in response.
(Ehehe, that shut Akito up real quick.)
Akito clicked around, flicking on a few switches—presumably the lights and microphone headset for Kohane. "Lights're on. Koha, mic's on."
Kohane nodded. "It's on!" she said, covering the mic so it wouldn't revebrate out into the onstage speakers.
Toya turned to the girls, expression seemingly neutral. "Let's... let's do our best everyone." he said.
"Mm!" Kohane and Akito responded, with varying levels of excitement.
“Ahh—guys, my energy levels dropped just hearing that! Watch me, this is how you do it!” An exclaimed, puffing out her chest then pumping up her fist. “This is how you do it! Vividlands×Showtime—let's do our best!"
"Yeah!"
The chatter of the audience (mostly comprised of young children and their parents) was silenced when Kohane—in this cass, the almighty person in theatre, the Narrator—cleared her throat.
"Once upon a time, in a land far away, there was a princess named Apricot." the Narrator started, "She lived in a royal palace, with many servants and many riches."
Kohane looked back. She didn't doubt Akito's skill and timing, it had just come out of curiosity to check.
Since she stood infront of the backstage entrance that sat at an angle—so the audience couldn't just take a peak behind the scenes—she could see the control panel from where she was standing.
Akito held down a lever, summoning the backdrop to fall in.
Kohane smiled, continuing the narration. "But, she wasn't happy being pampered. She had other goals—becoming a princess knight, to prove her independence."
The lights rose on the old stage to cheerful music, and An stepped forward with a dramatic flourish as she raised her sword high.
“I must set off with my trusty sword and become a Princess Knight by defeating the Oni Lord!” Apricot declared, her voice ringing proudly across the stage.
"Ooh—!" the audience gasped.
"When Princess Apricot approached the forest—"
Akito took a deep breath from backstage, readying the seperate controls he had to operate for AkiRobo.
In a moment, AkiRobo would go onstage.
"Shinonome,"
He looked back. The split haired boy was already in his dark costume, his blank expression would look more intimidating to the audience who couldn't read him.
Akito, though, had luckily started to be able to read through the poker face a bit.
"Yeah?" he asked.
Toya did a small fist pump. "I believe in you." he said earnestly.
Akito looked down at AkiRobo's remote control, gripping it tighter.
"Thanks... you too."
Apricot had her woes. The forest was absolutely one of those woes.
"Oi," a robotic voice called out.
"Ah!"
She paused, turning as though she'd just noticed someone.
“Well, if it isn't A of the Hermit Tribe." Apricot said with a sheepish laugh, "What do you want?"
"Nothin', just what exactly is a prissy princess like you doing around these places." [A] said bluntly, "You're gonna die."
Apricot huffed. "Hey! For your information, I'm no prissy princess, I can handle myself!"
"Sure you can" [A] replied with utmost sarcasm.
"Fine, I underestimated you Princess."
"Hehe~ guess so."
[A] sighed. "As a thanks for saving my tribe from that monster, have this hyper drink."
Apricot accepted it with pride.
"Thank you! Oh, this looks good for energy... let me try..." she said, taking a swing at the thankfully prop, empty can. "Eugh! What is this?"
"Oil, you nutcase. Hermit robots drink oil."
Laughter rippled through the audience.
Kohane beamed. “They laughed...” she whispered, covering her mic.
Slightly behind her, hidden behind the partition, Toya's eyes widened slightly. “They did.”
Kohane smiled, relieved.
“We got a good reaction. The next scene is yours, Aoyagi-kun.” she said. "I'm leaving it to you and the mascots."
Toya nodded. He signalled to Kigurumi and the other mascot characters backstage.
"Everyone, get into position!" Kigurumi ordered, hushing the others into the 'dragon'.
They prepared for their cue from the onstage actors.
"The heck is that sound?"
"What are we waiting for, let's go investigate!"
"Now, now, now!" Kigurumi whisper-yelled as the dragon accompanied Toya onstage.
"Wahh! That's a huge dragon!!" a child from the audience yelled out in awe.
Kohane giggled.
(It may be a simple prop based on a lion dance costume, but when everyone is in sync, it's almost as if it has come to life...)
(This... this is amazing...)
"You..." Apricot hissed, holding her sword in both hands as she laid eyes on the man.
"I am Dongmi, the Oni Lord." he introduced himself, moreso to the audience than to the princess. "They sent a mere princess to defeat me...?"
"Watch what you're saying!" [A] barked out.
"Watch your tone hermit," Dongmi scoffed. "my dragon will destroy you both."
The dragon swatted at the two protagonists.
[A] scoffed. "Tch, how do we defeat this thing, Princess?"
Apricot thought for a moment, feigning a process of idea-making. She snapped her fingers, as if struck by inspiration.
"I got it!" she exclaimed. "We can put that dragon to sleep with a song! Someone needs to sing a song..."
"...Leave this to me. I'll sing a song."
[A] began to sing, the semi-robotic voice drifted across the stage and the area surrounding.
"Woah... that robot's voice is so cool!" a child exclaimed.
"Yes! Keep going, A! The dragon is becoming sleepier and sleepier—"
When a sudden screech of feedback rang out. The audience, as well as the performers, immediately covered their ears.
"Huh? What the... what the fuck—" Akito hissed, hitting the controller a few times.
The mic had cut out, and now the movement controls weren't working.
Then, the shutdown screen popped up and disabled all possible control until—
Until charged.
The battery died.
"Shit..."
(I have to fix this—)
Akito ran towards the partition, almost slamming into the partition when his knees nearly buckled.
Kohane and Toya were stealing glances towards backstage. But after a few, Toya stopped and helped An try to keep the show flowing by improvising.
Kohane covered the mic. "Akito-kun, what's going on—?!" she whisper-shouted.
"The battery fucking died, it won't move and— shit, I can't get on stage!" he whisper-shouted back.
An’s thoughts raced beneath her confident expression.
(Why did it freeze up all of a sudden?)
(Is it broken?)
(What do we do now?!)
(I can’t defeat the dragon if he doesn’t finish singing!)
She forced out a laugh, trying her best to stay in character. “A, what’s the matter? It seems your song made you fall asleep before the dragon did!”
An—no, Apricot—turned to the audience. “I need you to sing just a little longer! Perhaps A needs encouragement from our wonderful audience! Can you help us—?!”
(This will buy us time… Akito, Kohane, please—think of something!!)
"A you can do it!!" the audience cheered.
"My dragon seems to be startled by the noise..." Dongmi adlibbed.
(...! Nice, Toya!)
(This way we may not even need Akito to finish.)
"Alright, while the dragon is shocked." Apricot said, readying her sword. "I'll defeat him on my own!"
Kohane looked back towards the audience, before sneakily climbing onto stage and running in backstage.
She took off her microphone headset, approaching the table with the control panel with Akito.
She checked on the remote control—only to realize that even the emergency battery system she implemented for incidents like this was also drained.
(How...?)
"Akito-kun... how long did you practice yesterday—?" she turned back to ask.
Akito's eyes widened. "I..."
"Akito!"
"I don't know okay?!"
Kohane furrowed her brows. "Akito-kun... we both know that's not true... what did you do—"
"Shut up."
"Why did you... why didn't you stop—?"
"Shut up."
"Why didn't you go to my house to recharge it—"
"Shut up!" Akito yelled, banging his fist against table, shaking the control panel. "Shut the fuck up! I don't have time for you or your bullshit—"
He stopped himself far too late. He turned to face Kohane and saw the stunned, almost horrified expression on her face.
"...Eh...?" she whispered, voice barely there.
Akito felt a lump clog his throat. "I—"
Thud!
The two of them jolted.
"That came from the stage," Akito said.
Kohane bolted out, grabbing her discarded mic from earlier.
"Huh? The princess got squashed by A!"
An struggled, trying to get the robot off of her. She had to clutch this show—she just had to.
"Shirashi, do you want me to—" Toya whispered.
"No! It'll ruin this... I can do this myself..." she whispered back, trying once more to push herself up.
Toya turned back, locking eyes with Kigurumi even through his mascot costume.
Kohane came running out of backstage.
(Kohane!... why does she look upset, what did Akito do?!)
"An-chan, we have to end the show." Kohane said while trying to shakily readjust her headphones.
(Huh?)
"W-wait, no way! I can still fight, I haven't... I haven't defeated the Oni Lord yet!" An exclaimed, before hissing as the weight of AkiRobo held her down still.
"I-I'm sorry..."
Kohane turned to the audience properly and started her improvisation.
"W-with that," she flinches as the mic gave some feedback. "Princess Apricot... b-became friends with... with the dragon... a-and the Oni Lord escaped."
She shakily took a breath. "B-But the princess' journey has only j-just started!"
"U-until... until the day where— the princess would defeat the Oni King, they continued on their journey..." she continued. "The end!"
"What...?" An whispered.
With that, Kigurumi immediately got out of the 'dragon' and helped take AkiRobo off of An.
Meanwhile—
“That’s it?” a child complained. “That’s sooo boring!”
“The princess got saved by the bad guys?” another scoffed. “Lame!! That story's for babies!”
A mother frowned. “That was a really confusing show… the plot was all over the place...”
“It started off well,” a father sighed, “But then it got ruined. Tsk, the performers clearly hadn't practiced!”
"Let's go somewhere else, we've wasted our time enough here." someone else said.
The whispers, the children's booing before their parents dragged them away, the conversations—all were able to be heard from backstage
Ah...
It's all ruined...