ID Chapter 11

# Chapter Eleven - "Sweets For Three"

    "First Kerberos and now this? How can we miss them both?!"

    "This isn't faaaiiirrr!" My best friend Akira's whine only ended when she stuck a strawberry into her mouth whole and gobbled it up.

    "Anette, you're positive they didn't have anything left? The tickets just went on sale today!" My other best friend Yume pleaded with me, as though that could change anything. What can a trio of petite, powerless idols do in the face of unrelenting tragedy?

    What they're so upset about is the upcoming concert by one of the most exciting idol ensembles to premiere this season. Not only that, they're one of the most exciting idol ensembles to premiere out of our own label, the magnifique I MY ME, in years. They aren't just marvelous idols, they're our personal muses. Once we've all had a proper debut, we want to form a group just like them with all three of us. Les Trois Belles!

    The name is… still up for debate…

    We are, as some of the girls in the dorm have started calling themselves, Lunulas - HUGE fans of Interlunium. Their sound, their moves, their look… they've already started breathing new life into Tokyo's idol scene, we can all feel it, and they haven't even formally debuted yet. But! They will soon! So we knew that one of us had to try to purchase tickets the moment they went on sale, and that duty fell to me. Mademoiselle Akira attends a different school than Mademoiselle Yume and I, so it was up to one of us to get the tickets while the other would bring us our lessons from the "sick" girl's teachers. And so I stood in line for hours, waiting for my chance to purchase the tickets, when zut! There were none left to be had! All we could do about it is eat desserts at our favorite bakery and be saddened by this turn of events. Such a cruel fate!

    This is, of course, only what I told my friends. It is, in fact, all a jest orchestrated by moi in good fun, and the tickets will feel all the more special once my friends have fretted over not having them. I'm such a good friend to do this for them.

    "Non. There were none. The Lunulas were like sharks, eating them up furiously like… like macarons." I took a bite of one of my sweets, mimicking the ferociousness of a predator of the deep. I thought for sure it would make them laugh, but alas, it did not. "Fish. Like fish."

    "Darn! I really wanted to see them, toooo!"

    "Who's your favorite, Akira? I really love Dam-Bi! She moves with such passion, it's like watching a gymnast perform!"

    "Dam-Bi is great! But I really like Rinko! She always has such great energy! Plus I still think that when we form a group I should totally be the leader, like her!"

    "You are, of course, both wrong." I set out to instruct my friends as to the proper way of things. "All of the idoles lune are, of course, tres magnifique. That must never be questioned. But only one of them is the embodiment of *proper* culture. Her grace, beauty, and sense of humor are simply unmatched. I speak, of course, about the singular perfection that is… Kanon Mitsuboshi?!"

    "Wah? But you always say your favorite is Eimi?"

    "Non! Non, look!"

    I pointed as hard as I could past Yume, who was seated next to me in one of the bakery's booths, and aimed it at the window of the restaurant. Beyond, out in the street, were two girls wearing the unmistakable attire of idols. They appeared to be handing out flyers as people walked by, occasionally shaking a hand or taking a photo with an interested party. As soon as they confirmed that this was, in fact, not one of my hilarious pranks, both of my friends erupted in a frenzy of excitement. Like sharks, eating macarons.

    I still think it was funny.

    "Oh my gosh! It IS Kanon! And Chiyo! Do you think Momo is with her?"

    "She can't be, right? It's way too cold out for a hamster! Oh my goodness do you think they'll take a picture with us?! Uwah!"

    "Their media accounts say they're out doing promotions today! Maybe they will! Anette! I can't believe you saw them all the way from there!"

    "Ah, yes, well, my eyes are… eh?" Both my friends had gone quiet, and I could practically see what they were thinking before they said it in unison in that creepy sort of way very good friends sometimes do.

    "Maybe they can get us tickets?!"

    "'Akira, you're still in your uniform! Don't they go to your school? Maybe they'll do you a favor?"

    "Anette was in some training classes with Kanon, weren't you? Anette! Go talk to them!"

    "Ah, non. Nonon. Non. It is not proper to beg for things. I cannot do it. Non. Excusez-moi."

    "But you begged me to buy you the bigger pack of cookies! If that's ok, then…"

    "That's different! Macarons are macarons, and today I am eating for two. Chizuru wanted them, and sometimes she must be kept happy or she will be difficult to control." I mimed the vicious claws and teeth that my other self would threaten to unleash upon the world if she was not kept contented through delicious French sweets. This, too, did not get a laugh. My friends were being impossible today.

    "It sounds to me like you just wanted extra cookies! You should get some exercise. Like walking outside, and asking Kanon if she can get us tickets!"

    "What a terrible thing to say, Mademoiselle Akira. Hmph. But, fine. Let it never be said that Anette Chanel didn't do everything in her power to help her friends." I pushed my way past Yume in a huff, obviously put out by the indignity I was being made to suffer in the name of friendship.

    Of course, I was grinning from ear to ear like a Cheshire cat as soon as I was walking away. Perhaps instead of the prankster, today I will have to be the heroine instead.

    A blast of hot, sweet air hit me as I exited the bakery - delightful when entering, but on my exit it merely made the late autumn chill even more unbearable. The two idols were still camped out in front of the store, largely being ignored by the public passing by. It was no effort at all - très simple - to approach my almost, sort of associate from training while her counterpart was taking a photo with some enfants.

    "Mademoiselle Kanon! What a delight to see you again. Congratulations on your upcoming debut!" She looked at me blankly at first, then a spark of recognition fired in her brain.

    "Oh… I know you…"

    "Anette! Anette Chanel! We were in Monsieur Ishii's seminar together. My friends and I are big fans. Huge Lunulas! We already have tickets to your big debut, see?" I pulled the three long strips of cardstock out of my pocket and held them at chest height, careful that my back was to the bakery window. Her face shifted suddenly to a look of elation, her previous sense of ennui replaced completely by an excited smile.

    "Chiyo! Come here! Come here!" The green-haired belle skipped over to us after patting a young girl on the head while her mother snapped a memento of the occasion. "Chiyo! This is Anette! She's an idol like us and she already has tickets to see our debut!"

    "Really?! They just went on sale! You must be our biggest fan! I'm so happy to meet you!" Frantic clapping accompanied her tiny bounces as the excitement overwhelmed her. I hoped that Momo, the très cute hamster we all followed on social media, was safely at home, lest she be turned into a hamster milkshake.

    This was not right. They were the great idols and moi the mere fan. Oui, I had met Kanon before, but that was still no excuse for them to be more excited about meeting than I was. I needed to be even more excited!

    "Mademoiselle Chiyo! It is such an honor to meet you! Please, I know I am but a simple fan, but would you give me the great gift of signing my concert tickets for me and my friends?!" I bowed deeply, holding the tickets extended in both hands. For a few seconds there was no response, but then…

    "YES!!! This is so exciting!" Chiyo took the tickets and signed their backs one by one against one of the bakery's windows. I wish I could see my friends' faces right now.

    "Mademoiselle Kanon, could you as well? Their names are Yume and Akira, and each is studying for their I MY ME exams to become an idol just like you. They're even bigger fans than anyone." She took them as Chiyo finished signing, adding her signature to the back. After posing for a quick picture with both of them, I turned to go wow my friends with their good fortune. However, I hesitated, as there was one more thing I thought I should say.

    "Remember, your Lunulas love you! Do your best!" Their smiles made me hope that someday I would have fans as adoring as Akira and Yume to make me feel like that.

    After returning to the bakery and warming my hands at the table, purposely dragging out the reveal, my friends' patience finally reached its limit.

    "So?! What happened?!"

    "Yeah! We saw you out there practically groveling! Did it work?"

    "I regret to say, non! It did not! They had no tickets to give us! All they would do…"

    I paused dramatically, once again testing the limits of patience.

    "...was take a picture, and autograph these for us. I'm sorry I failed you!" I hung my head in shame, though mostly to hide my giant smirk, and handed over the signed papers, faking the sound of tears.

    "Don't feel bad, Anette! An autograph is still really- uwah?! Yume! Look at this!"

    "It says 'Yume, thank you for being a-'"

    "Flip it over!"

    I couldn't hold it in any longer, and my laughter cascaded from a petit giggle to full on belly laughs.

    "Excusez-moi! I'm sorry. I just… couldn't… resist…"

    "Anette! I can't believe you fooled us!" Yume tackled me with a hug - luckily she is très petite - and Akira got me from the other side.

    "You should have expected nothing less! But now, it's time for more… hey! Where did my macarons go?"

    Both girls giggled guiltily before replying loudly in unison.

    "Must've been a shark!"

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