Pastel*Rangers

Chapter 29 - Damage Control

It is another beautiful day in Japan. Students are in school. Adults are at work. A lunch bell dings, signifying the start of the lunch period. It would be absurd if the lunch bell signified something else. With the lunch bell resonating all over Haneoka High School, Hina rushes out of her classroom, phone in hand. She runs towards one of the other classrooms and waits. A few moments later, Maya comes out of the classroom.

"Maya! Maya! Look at this!" She shoves her phone at Maya's face.

"Woah, Hina! Calm down! What is this?" Maya takes a step back.

"Just look at this article!" Hina insists. Maya reads on the title of the article.

"'Maya Yamato from Pastel*Palettes Incites Minor Riot at Small Cafe.' What the- that's not what happened at all!" Maya says, dumbstruck.

"So what happened yesterday with Lynn?" Hina asks. "Did a Negative attack?"

"No, no Negatives showed up. I was able to ask Lynn all of our questions, and then a fan recognized me" Maya says.

"Woah, you got recognized?" Hina says, amazed.

"Yeah" Maya answers. "It was pretty shocking. I've never been swarmed like this before."

"Chisato gets recognized all the time. Maybe you should ask her for advice" Hina says.

"Kaoru also gets swarmed by fans" Maya says. "I'm more worried about what they'll say at the studio."

"I think you'll be ok" Hina says. "Anyway, I gotta go now. Lisa invited me to eat lunch with her today. See ya~" Hina skips away, leaving Maya to her own thoughts. Maya walks towards the courtyard. She keeps walking, eventually reaching a well.

"I remember this well" Maya thinks to herself as she sits down. She begins an inner monologue in her head.

"I've been swarmed by fans in public. I should be happy, but... Why do I feel so stressed about it?"

Maya takes a bite of her food.

"Aya would've loved to be recognized in public. And Chisato gets recognized all the time. How am I any different? We're all idols, right?"

She takes another bite of food.

"Not to mention Kaoru. She's not an idol, yet she's constantly surrounded by fans. How does she deal with this?"

Maya takes a sip of her tea.

"I remember being warned about this when I first joined. That life would be different once our popularity grew. The studio executives wanted to make sure I was really sure this is what I wanted."

Another pause as she takes another bite of food.

"I don't regret joining Pastel*Palettes, but... I don't think I like not being able to go out in public. I know I can just wear a disguise, but is it possible something simple like sunglasses would work?"

Another pause for a drink.

"I.. Don't think I like worrying about going out in public. But, I also love being in Pastel*Palettes... What do I do?"

The bell dings, signifying the end of the lunch period. Maya finishes her meal just in time and stands up. As she walks away from the well, a pair of glowing eyes appears inside of it. Maya ignores the feeling of the air around her getting colder as she walks back to her class.

*Ding-dong-bing-bong*

The bell dings, signifying the end of the school day. Maya gets her phone and sends a message.

Maya: "I've felt a chill all day, but I haven't seen any Negatives around. Do you know what might be causing that?"

Maya puts her phone away and starts making her way to the studio. While in class, Maya had received a message from Mana-san asking her to come to the studio afterschool. Although she did not say why, Maya guesses that it has to do with the article that Hina showed her. She arrives and walks in.

"Hello, Yamato" the receptionist greets her. "Mana-san is in the conference room, waiting for you."

Maya thanks her and makes her way to the conference room. Mana-san and her producer are already inside, waiting.

"Hello, Yamato" Mana-san greets her. "Here, have a seat."

Maya takes a seat.

"So Yamato" Mana-san begins. "Have you seen the recent article about you?"

"Hina showed it to me earlier" Maya answers. She feels a cold chill in the room.

"Have you read it?" Mana-san asks.

"No, I didn't read it" Maya answers.

"I see" Mana-san says. "The article is from Yoba Academy, so we are not worried about it spreading to the mainstream news, however, we are speaking with their newspaper club to minimize the risk of that happening. So there is no need to worry about how this will affect you or your career. However, we did notice a few things while reading it."

"Firstly, you let a fan take a selfie, but ran away from everyone else, correct?" The producer asks.

"Yes, I did" Maya answers.

"As an idol, you're not supposed to give special treatment to any one fan" Mana-san says. "If you take a selfie with one fan, you take one with every fan."

"Secondly, there's the issue of your company" the producer says. "You were spotted with girls who wore the same uniform as you, which is completely fine, but there was an older woman with you as well. The article says you were seen walking in with her alone."

"As an idol, you're not supposed to spend time alone with any singular fan" Mana-san says. "The exception is classmates, but that woman was clearly older."

"I'm sorry" Maya apologizes.

"It's not your fault" Mana-san says. "Your basic idol training was rushed, so these lessons didn't stick as well as they did with everyone else. But please, from here on out, try to be more careful."

"I'm not in trouble?" Maya asks, surprised.

"Not at all" the producer says. "As we just mentioned, it was only one article from a high school newspaper, and it seems no one else has picked up the story. We are taking care of making sure it does not spread. However, please do be more careful, like Mana-san said."

"Thank you very much" Maya says.

"That is all we wanted to speak with you about. Thank you for coming on such short notice" Mana-san says.

"You're welcome." Maya stands up and bows before exiting the conference room.

"Mana-san, I would like to speak with you about the girl from the article" the producer says once Maya leaves.

"The girl who recognized Maya?" Mana-san asks. "What about her?"

"Does she not look familiar?" the producer asks.

"She bears a strong resemblance to Hikawa, that's for sure" Mana-san answers.

"Correct" the producer says. "But more importantly, she might be just what I've been looking for to further boost Pastel*Palettes' popularity. I need to make a phone call."

Outside the studio, Maya pulls out her phone while waiting for the bus. She sees a reply from Lynn.

Lynn: "Probably the weather. I mean, I've been feeling the cold too. And I remember seeing snow in the weather forecast. As far as I know, Negatives have no way of staying hidden. Once I feel a chill, that means they're already here. I'll ask boss just to make sure. I'll let you know what she says!"

Maya: "No worries. By the way, is it possible for any of us to be possessed by a Negative?"

Maya puts her phone away and boards the bus, making her way back home.

Lynn: "It shouldn't be. Why do you ask?"

Maya: "Just wondering."

Lynn: "Is everything ok?"

Maya: "Everything's fine. I was just wondering more about the nature of Negatives."

Lynn: "I see. Well, you can message me if you have any more questions."

Maya: "Thank you."

Maya makes her way back home. The whole way back, she's unable to shake off the strange chill she's been feeling since eating at the well. A yellow pair of eyes follows her home, hiding in her shadow, unseen by anyone, not even Maya herself.