Chapter Text
Shizuku was wandering through Miyamasuzaka, faintly paying attention to the quiet chattering occurring through them in case she had to think of a way to escape an encounter with a fan. Thankfully, the students in school were mostly quiet about the fact that she was an Idol. One thing that she didn’t expect to overhear was some first years talking about a music group that only made songs over the internet.
“Nightcord at 25:00 is what they’re called, though I don’t really know why. Their songs resonate with me a lot, and I love the themes they cover. They really helped me out of a dark place I was in. Lately they’ve been doing solo covers instead of just group or vocaloid covers!” A girl spoke, obviously trying to get her friend to listen to them. Shizuku smiled softly at the sound of music recommendations, wondering if she should ask Miku if she knew of other bands around her area.
“I don’t know, these song names seem pretty dark. I mean, ‘Otome Dissection’? ‘Bocca Della Verità'? (Mouth of truth) those seem pretty scary for song topics.” That got Shizuku to pause. Those song topics seemed pretty dark. She wondered momentarily if she should walk up to the student and ask what songs she recommended, but thought better of it. She was eavesdropping on the conversation, so it seemed rude to ask for a song from them.
When Shizuku reached the rooftop for practice, she couldn’t stop thinking about the band the girls were talking about. Dark song topics weren’t something she strayed from, but she could have sworn that she recognized Otome Dissection from somewhere…
All through practice, the thoughts took a back burner, until she finally recognized it fully. She had heard Asahina singing a song that had those words in it. The song was a little disturbing, but not unlike a song Minori and Haruka had covered for fun. She had sung it rather quietly so she only caught onto a few words. She paused for a moment, before Airi caught her attention. “Hey, earth to space cadet! Are you down to us again?” She joked, before catching the disturbed face Shizuku was making.
“Hey, are you ok?” She asked, before sitting next to her. Minori and Haruka had already left, but Shizuku stayed to practice a little more. “I heard some girls talking about a music group that only posts music online, but the song topics were rather dark. I heard Asahina singing a song that had the words that matched the song title, and so I worry if she is ok or not…But it may not even be the same song..” She trailed off. Airi paused for a moment before pulling out her phone. “Only one way to find out if it’s the same song.” Shizuku watched as Airi pulled up Niigo’s channel.
As she watched Airi scroll until she found other songs, she found a multiple of other songs that had concerning titles. Bake no Hana, Hated by Life, It’s just Life, Irony, Phony? All were ones that were concerning. Some of them were happier seeming, such as IDsmile, Passion at 25, Cell Phone Love Story, and Bloom in the Mud. But looks could be deceiving.
Soon, Airi found Otome Dissection and pressed play. Quickly, Shizuku could feel her breath stolen. The description read:
Sung by Yuki & Amia
Music created by K
Art by Enanan
MV by Amia
When Shizuku tuned in again, She immediately heard the voice she recognized.
“I want to feel ashamed. I learned from that night that the more painful it is, the better it is.”
She could feel her breath be taken away by the way that her voice fluctuated, how normal it seemed for Asahina to sing those words. The longer the song went on, the more worried she began to feel for the two girls. When the final lyrics played, Shizuku couldn’t help but stare at the phone before looking up at Airi, before finally noticing she was talking.
“I know Ena mentioned being a part of a music group, but I didn’t know that anyone could edit art that good. It makes Ena’s art look so much better!” She smiled as she spoke. Shizuku felt confused for a moment, before she remembered Shinonome. “Oh, she works in this group as well?” Shizuku asked, before Airi nodded. “Yes! Her art looks so wonderful and works with the songs!”
Shizuku stared at the screen, and wondered what exactly was happening with her friend.