2023-08-06: Eden is a Place Off Earth
- Log: 2023-08-06 Eden is a Place Off Earth
- Cast: Ranka Lee, Knight, Asciel Colette, Rikka Takarada, Garrod Ran, Shinji Ikari, Kaworu Nagisa, Chloe, Akane Shinjo, Alouette Pommier, BP-110 Deckerd, Gridman, Emilia Eschonbach, Natarle Badgiruel, Christina MacKenzie
- Where: Side 1
- OOC - IC Date: August 6, UC 0097 (OOC: August 3, 2023)
- Summary: At the same time that others are investigating something strange, Ranka performs a concert on the space colony known as Eden.
<Pose Tracker> Ranka Lee has posed.
An interview recently asked why budding idol, Ranka Lee would make Eden on Side 1, a concert destination. It had all been very politely and couched in language that tried to diplomatically not say that the interviewer thought it was not the sort of place she should bother with. Her answer had been, 'I want my music to reach everyone, and I want everyone to understand what could be.' Apparently her time off the Frontier Colony in her travels to debut as an idol had affected her.
Eden as a Colony has all the hallmarks of a place that is living on inertia, without any significant recent investment. The Colony divided rather starkly into the haves in the more spacious rural areas, with the have nots placed in a crowded urban section. To those taking a shuttle to reach the Colony, either linear car or rail is needed to reach the concert area.
The path there rather forces people to look, and see, advertisements that haven't been replaced in decades, crowded highways, a lack of any forward thinking in it's urban planning and development. The contrast between the feelings in it's name to evoke paradise, and the reality for how most people live here are stark. There are advertisements for Ranka's concert, but they're subdued, almost as if it were a purposeful decision not to make it stand out or stand above the residents there.
The Ricardo Marcenas memorial amphitheater is a tiered but open air venue in the park, with elevated seating, but also an ample number of 'cheap seats' on the park lawn between the stage and the remainder of the sitting. It's a rather old venue, but it was cleaned up prior to the concert such that it's not uncomfortable. Instead it has a more down to earth feel that Spacenoids who live outside of the Macross Colonies might appreciate.
Despite the discounted seats, there are accommodations for a limited number of VIPs, or simply people who have difficulty with crowds.
Right now, in the early evening before the concert, it's jam packed with people, both from the Colony and Side - upon which proof of residence allowed one to receive a substantial discount, and travelers otherwise. The merch booths are stocked with T-shirts, her first single, other fan memorabilia, and her trademark glowstick heart without the usual exorbitant concert markup. It's said that everyone after the concert will receive the opportunity to purchase a limited edition of her new single, which will be revealed at the end.
The lights of the hall are on right now, lending a contrast with the open 'night sky' of the Colony itself. It's hardly quiet, as both the concert amphitheater and the parking lot outside is abuzz with activity. People have set up groups with which they might still listen to the music, even if they couldn't get a ticket inside lending a different air to this concert than one on a more well to do Colony. The outdoor nature of the amphitheater allows such a thing, and thus people have set up small encampments with which they might grill food, or livestream the concert while also listening to it.
Ordinarily it'd be a worry that security, or police would clear such things out, but for some reason they're not so long as noone gets too rowdy.
Everyone waits to see what this Macross Idol has to offer for the people of this Colony, even if it's only an evening's respite.
<Pose Tracker> Knight has posed.
Knight and Nidaime drew straws to figure out who was going to Ranka's next concert, and who was staying behind to make sure Leina doesn't wake up in the middle of the night without support. Nidaime's the one helping Banagher out, by royal straw decree, but it's okay --
She can stream the music.
Meanwhile, Knight ventures out of the house. He's travelling with one Christina MacKenzie, today; his stoic, quiet nature is known to be strikingly feline, in the Villa, and it's not at all strange that he'd be short on words. He is, however...
... wearing a headband with a pair of green bangs hanging down either side, like big, floppy puppy ears.
Today, he is a puppycat.
Reserved of expression, he hands Chris a heart-shaped glowstick. "Christina MacKenzie, you'll need this," he says, and says her full name, as he always does. "It's important." He buys one for himself as well, of course, as if to underline just how important they are.
He, of course, goes to settle in on one of those elevated seats, because cat is elevated. He has his phone set to stream the concert, unobtrusively, because he did promise Nidaime he would.
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
-Not too long ago, when Asciel stayed far, far too long at Yes Milady and gradually descended from having her head utterly in the clouds to just, like, talk with Alouette about normal stuff for a while, the subject of Ranka's concert came up! Immediately the notion of a concert at Eden came up - before finding out's not that Eden, the one in a distant star system that Sharon Apple's fateful crisis happened.
Still, it sounds interesting! -well, maybe Asciel had to be slightly talked into why it's interesting (it really, really isn't hard to deduce with an iota of emotional intelligence that even if she talks around it, she's alarmingly self-centered), but she was easily convinced to take a gander at a up and coming new idol!
Her attempt at dressing a little more covertly and summery and largely in Ranka memorabilia is...still showy. A black t-shirt that's inevitably a tight crop top on Asciel's towering frame, and white stretchy shorts, each with a matching checkerboard line in their opposite color down one side. Ranka-themed hat, Ranka-themed wristband, glossy white thigh-high boots. It's a very effective and stylish race queen type getup!
'But Asciel,' one might say, 'Ranka Lee isn't a car ', but HOWEVER-
...she is completing the look by sitting on the hood of a tackily Ranka-themed sports car owned by Eden Colony's #1 Ranka Fan, someone who's gotten themselves front-line seats while leaving their ride closer to the outskirts. It's as good a platform as any for Asciel to selfie-stick herself a stream-along. "Hey-eh!~" (she's trying a new greeting) "Everything visible for everyone out there?~ Don't worry, I'll make sure all of you can see the adorable rising star that is Ranka Lee as soon as she steps out. In the meantime, you proooobably wonder why I'm featuring a competitor, but if anything, the lack of collaborating I've done has led to some of the biggest, most outstanding requests all of you have given me. After all, there's no such thing as an impossible dream duet for me!~"
...It's probably a bit hard to approach Asciel straight up chattering incessantly to her viewers until the show starts, but hey she's certainly not hard to find! The Rankamobile is certainly attracting the kind of attention its owner is gonna adore!
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
The trip to the concert venue has been... pretty eye-opening for Rikka. She's heard how bad things could be in the colonies, of course, but it's another to witness the state of Eden in person.
It makes her think about Tsutsujidai. They'll... need to be careful, won't they? ...She can pin that thought for later. It's one she definitely wants to go back to eventually.
She arrives and, of course, heads right to the merch booths and gives the fare a good look over before picking up a few things and heading in to find her seat.
She'll at least make a good beacon for those she's attending the concert with!
<Pose Tracker> Garrod Ran has posed.
For all that Garrod was born and grew up on Earth, venturing into Eden feels very familiar - very much like the youngest years he remembers, struggling to stay alive with only his mother's support ... and then without even that much. Ancient advertisements, urban crowding, 'you'll live here and you'll put up with it' - how many times did he hear those words spoken, or half spoken and the rest merely known?
It's humbling, and it's a healthy reminder - for all that Garrod lives in reasonable comfort on the Freeden, he's one unlucky calamity away from having nowhere to call 'home' again. But while he gives those darker thoughts their due space in his head, he's more interested in the concert ahead - and in trying to get a copy of those singles so that he can at least share that much with Tiffa when he gets back.
One of these days, it might even be safe enough to bring Tiffa *to* a concert - but between the trip and the ticket price, he couldn't make it happen this time. So, he'll have to enjoy it enough for both of them ... maybe even literally.
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
It's been a while since Shinji's attended a Ranka Lee concert, and arguably since that one time was before she debuted and a GUTS inter-school event during last year's DecuFes, it doesn't count. The scale of the people attending is completely different, after all. But he's coming with Kaworu today first by shuttle and then linear rail, and they're both dressed discreetly for it, in plain T-shirts and jeans that would seem to match save for individual minor differences.
They reach the park with no particular problems and reach their seats. It's a little embarrassing (to Shinji; Kaworu is immune to embarrassment) but they pick up a pair of heart-shaped glowsticks for each of them; Kaworu already has her first single so Shinji gets a copy for himself, and they move from there to the seating. Shinji sticks close to Kaworu. If they're holding hands, it's just because it's so crowded and he doesn't want to get separated from him. Honest.
"Th-there's a lot of people..." Shinji murmurs as they make their way through the throng.
Anyone else might not have heard him through the noise. Kaworu smiles over at him. "Yes. They're all here to enjoy the same thing we are."
And oddly, that makes him feel a little less nervous. Certainly the sad, abandoned feel of Side 1 isn't unfamiliar to him. He smiles back. As the two of them reach their seats, Kaworu catches sight of Knight in his puppyears headband and gives him a friendly smile. Despite all the people around, he's confident Knight will notice, and doesn't worry if he smiles back.
Shinji, meanwhile, spots someone a little more his speed. "Ah, it's Rikka-san!" he says, raising an arm to wave to her. It's been a long time since they saw each other last.
There seems to be some kind of commotion going on elsewhere in the crowd with a Ranka-designed car, but fortunately or unfortunately, they're far enough away to (Shinji) not make it out (Kaworu) reasonably leave it be.
<Pose Tracker> Chloe has posed.
It's entirely by coincidence that Coco and Chloe happened to be at the Eden colony of Side 1 today. While the former had heard and liked some Ranka Lee songs before, she would not call herself a 'fan' in as much as she follows the idol's concert news. And of course, the latter is definitely not the type to be into music, barring one exception.
Regardless, when Coco heard news of the concert, she made the snap decision to attend. She'd never been to a concert before and wanted to experience what one was like. And so of course, Chloe was bound to go with her, despite not really understanding the whole 'idol' thing.
Thus the two are currently already in their seats (well at least one of them) at the edge of the VIP section. They are there both because of Coco's status as the daughter of, essentially, diplomats but also her needs which are better managed in said section. Coco herself is listening to the excitement of the crowd in the amphitheater, her own excitement represented by the smile on her face.
After listening to fans talking about the concert, about the music of Ranka Lee, about their hopes for what they'll see, Coco turns her head towards Chloe and asks, "Are concerts always like this?"
Chloe definitely seems less interested, her face showing a constant stoic calm despite the atmosphere. But at the question she glances around, eyeing the crowd before replying, "I believe so, though I've never attended one personally. Just seen videos."
"Ah, it's a little sad that that doesn't surprise me." Coco grins, "Well, now you'll be able to say you have!" She raises a finger pointedly, "And make sure to pay attention. There will be a test afterwards to ensure that you have."
Chloe definitely does seem thrilled by that, but nonetheless agrees, "If you insist, Coco."
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
Concerts are often a bit of a test for Akane, and she's been struggling with the impulse to exclude herself again lately -- which is, of course, exactly why she needs to attend on the spur of the moment rather than stop herself from doing so. She doesn't have a plan for this at all -- which is why when she'd texted Rikka to mention she was going, she'd been very pleasantly surprised to find out she wasn't going alone.
When she sees Rikka -- who is, indeed, a beacon for her in so many senses of the word -- her lips pull up in a big smile, and she half-jogs over. Giving her a quick peck on the cheek, she says, "I was kinda worried about going to this one alone... but it's nice not to have to," before entwining her hand with Rikka's.
Her posture definitely gets a little slouchier as more people filter into the venue, though, shoulders drawing in and lean toward Rikka becoming a little more pronounced. She does whisper something in Rikka's ear before the crowd gets too loud for whispering to work, though.
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
Alouette was really enthusiastic about Ranka Lee's new concert, she was very impressed with the first, and even got to know her a little while shopping for swimsuits. So she's pleased to have the opportunity to support her - not even minding spending a chunk of her last paycheck on the ticket. And yes, she did tell Asciel about it during her last shift at Yes Milady.
Eden is a new place for her - she spends a lot of time in space, but a base like the Orbit Base is much intrinsically different from actually spending time in the colonies, the state of which she's only really read in books.
Of course, the first thing that catches her attention arriving to the venue is that ridiculously garish sports car plastered with Ranka pics. It's unmistakable who's responsible for this. "So you decided to come after all," Alouette greets the competing idol with a sly smile. "I'm looking forward to seeing how she does, too... a second concert really must be the toughest one, huh? Having so many eyes on you after a breakthrough first performance." She comments, seemingly getting confirmation from a more experienced idol. "I know she can do it though."
Wandering closer in the venue for the merchandise, there's quite a few familiar faces. Friends, as well as coworkers from NERV. She decides to stick close to Akane and Rikka, being two of her best friends - but she gives them space, too. Wouldn't want to interrupt the romance, would she?
"I wonder what her new songs are going to be like..." She says, as the concert looms closer in closer. "She had a lot of different genres going on in the first one." That made it kind of fun, though... you could never predict what'd you hear next.
<Pose Tracker> BP-110 Deckerd has posed.
Yuta doesn't really have any interest in Ranka Lee concerts, and neither does Deckerd, for that matter, however, he's not here for himself. No, he's here because his sister Kurumi reserved tickets only to find out that she wouldn't be able to get a ride to Side-1. So now he's gotta waste his time and resources on getting to the colony, recording a crappy cam rip, and buying overpriced merchandise just to appease her and correct her irresponsible purchasing, or some embarrassing baby photos of him are going to find their way into the hands of the Brave Police, and he REALLY does not want that. He's got an image to maintain, after all, damnit!
Well, it's not all bad, he supposes, it's time away from his sisters, and away from doing paperwork at the office. The music will probably be fine too, he guesses.
So here they are, and a new problem arises... Five meter tall robots aren't really meant to fit in concert spaces,but at the very least, his sister was only able to get backrow seats. Normally a bad thing, but kind of a blessing given the circumstances.
"Alright, Deckerd! Be sure to stay really still this time, okay? Don't want the recording to be too shaky, or sis is gonna complain I was too sloppy!"
Yuta's got a handheld cam recorder in one hand and a bag full of t-shirts and other related idol merch (he doesn't know what he bought, really) in the other, as he sits atop Deckerd's shoulder, getting a good view of the stage as he waits.
"Roger that, Yuta. Though, are you sure... No, never mind."
Deckerd's also got a pretty good view, unsurprisingly, but he's less concerned about being able to see things and more concerned about the legality of what Yuta's doing. He thinks for a bit, before concluding that it's fine. They probably wouldn't have let a Super AI like him in if that were a problem, though he should definitely read up on the rules for next time.
<Pose Tracker> Gridman has posed.
When Ranka and Gridman met at her last concert, he promised to support her, so naturally he'd show up here! It helps that he likes her music so much. Wearing the shirt he bought at the last concert, the young Hyper Agent stands in line for an iconic heart-shaped glow stick, rocking up onto his toes and back down in excitement.
In the near-distance, dressed in his typical suave suit, Sky Vitter leans against a parked car. Having made the excuse that attending a Ranka concert would make him more popular online, he accompanied Gridman -- not mentioning the quiet conversation the Neon Genesis Junior High Students had beforehand about the safety of Gridman, Rikka, and Akane.
Gridman returns to his comrade, two glowsticks in his hands. Offering one to Vit (who takes it with an air of indulgence), he looks around, yellow eyes lighting up at the sight of a few friends.
There's Rikka and Akane--! Oh, Akane whispers in Rikka's ear. Even though Alouette joins them, it doesn't feel quite right to intrude. Glancing another direction, Gridman sees Kaworu and Shinji--! Who are holding hands. Well, that's alright, he and Kaworu talked about Shinji before they ever became a couple. After everything that's been going on, those two deserve some time to relax and have fun.
"You know," Gridman says, looking back to Vit (who is taking a selfie with the heart-shaped glowstick, and startles when noticed). "I think I'll hang back here with you for a little while. You can see the stage really well!"
Vit gives an easy shrug, though he can't entirely hide a smile. "Whatever you say, Gridman."
<Pose Tracker> Emilia Eschonbach has posed.
The second tickets went on sale for this event, Emilia Eschonbach had hurriedly refreshed the site for tickets. Sure, transport would be a hassle and she'd have to miss some work but...
She wasn't going to miss a chance to support one of her best friends.
The walk through Eden had been somewhat sobering. It wasn't like the Frontier- arguably the ideal of what a colony could be. It wasn't even like Zeon. It felt closer to Area 11- the haves and the have nots, the stark divide between the people.
She could appreciate the statement being made.
Now, waiting for the concert to start, Emmy, in a freshly purchased Ranka shirt and with one of the heart glowsticks- her new job gives her a bit more spending money- makes her way to her seat, only to find herself behind a familiar face.
"H-Hi!" She stammers, leaning forward. "I w-w-wasn't sure if I'd. S-See anyone else I knew but, w-well." She gestures towards the stage, before giving a friendly smile to Shinji. "I-I'm Emilia. I, um, kn-know Kaworu through GUTS."
A glance through the crowd also gives a clear view of telltale blonde curls. Cautiously, Emmy gives a wave Alouette's way. It's a little relaxing to see other familiar presences.
Her eyes also fall briefly on the robot in the background, a small frown passing across her face briefly. It's fine. The Brave Police didn't have any reason to cause trouble with her right now.
<Pose Tracker> Ranka Lee has posed.
Ranka would probably faint if she knew about the Rankamobile. Fortunately she does not. Whereas Security seems to think better of walking up to the 5m robot hoisting up a child with the camera. Either way... the time comes for the start of the concert and.
BGM Start - Rainbow Bear Bear - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIRaN7T8G38
The lights of the concert hall start to dim, and what is at first a cheer becomes a hush, a sea of glowstick hearts lights the crowd amongst the dim Colony lighting, and the stage is illuminated by a spotlight. Husks of trees stand out in the monochromatic gloom, crumbling arches and stairs in the dark of night. A girl with green hair and a humble shabby dress of dull purple, and an apron crouches there alone, hands over her eyes. There is an unmistakable gloom, a despair to the scene. Meant to evoke a a dark, cruel, and unforgiving world. Yet despite this, the girl chants words as if they were a magical spell with increasing fervor, enthusiasm. Perhaps it is all she has left in this place...
"Leelamelloo lalamelloo lah loola-lah!
"Leelamelloo lalamelloo lah loola-lah!"
As she chants, oblivious to it, a second glowing figure begins to descend, a top hat adorned by a ribbon and a heart, wearing a fantastical vest and tie, coattails reaching down to her feet, garter stockings in black with pink accessories that hook to formal shorts, a ladybug like stopwatch a pair of black flats. She floats down from side to side with an open pink parasol. There's a fantastic, fairy godmother feel to her as her shoes click down and she closes the parasol.
"Leelamelloo lalamelloo lah loola-lah!
"Leelamelloo lalamelloo lah loola-lah!"
Wordlessly she dances behind the girl who's crouched down, taking her hands, as the instrumentals start to chirp a cheerful rise, pulling her hands from her eyes, the girl looks on in shock as she lets go, holding her hands out as a golden key like wand materializes, as long as a cane, a heart within it's key loops and a long red ribbon. The other girl steps away in shock, as there is the sparkle of magic in the air, and the scenery gains a popup book feel, as out of the crumbling landscape do buildings start to rise, materializing from nothing other than the magic of the song. The magic touches the husks of trees and they start to regenerate at its touch. More and more buildings rise until a fairy tale like city exists, it's buildings like something from the Middle Ages.
The girl in the dress seems in disbelief, turning away, as if even this were able to reach her heart - a heart that's been too drenched in these feelings for so long, yet the figure holds the key wand up overhead, and sings to her. The sparkles rise like colorful bubbles into the Colony sky. She dances over to the girl again and again, who pulls away, shaking her head in denial until she moves to the tree, hiding her face against it, but glancing at the figure out of the corner of her eye.
"For the longest time, the sky
"Made me feel lonely somewhere inside
"Even when we held hands and exchanged smiles
"What are we afraid of? What have we been hiding?
"Use the key to your heart now and open bearame."
The girl takes a step back, as a teddy bear materializes, delight blooming upon her face as aversion to hope starts to give way. As she presses it to her heart, the other figure with a grin holds the key out, a magical keyhole materializing and placing it within, she turns it as she calls out the magic words.
"Open Ranka!"
The moment she does, the godmother like figure's outfit transforms into something even more colorful. The blacks become pastel greens, the pinks become even brighter. And the changes become more rapid. The appearing landscape still had that colorless quality until now, but it starts, blooming from the maiden's feet, as the world takes on its magic, it's color - flowers blooming all around her as she rises, clothes disintegrating into pink light. In moments, her hair is gloriously spooled into curls, shining pink in a fairy like ballerina dress. The buildings surrounded by loops of floating hearts, the flowers waving as if out of a magical pop up book. Flying now, she tosses a pink handkerchief into the air, which becomes a rainbow of little fluttering birds shaped like paper airplanes, that all magically flutter away, before forming up again into a rising rainbow of them that loops over the audience from cobbles of wrapped candy.
"Flowers fill the city
"And pebbles become candy
"My handkerchief wipes away your tears
"And becomes a little bird."
Even the Colony's false sky in the open air looks bright blue, as day over the amphitheater, the landscape of the stage changing into a pink fairy tale castle, the fairy godmother rides the key as she surfs across the rainbow and into the audience. Looping back around, she meets up with the now fairy girl, as the key pops up into her hand, then duplicates, each one now taking on a smaller arm sized key. The two dance in place, a teddy bear dancing beside them.
"A lost little girl's love
"Will cross a rainbow
"To reach you, I'm sure it'll reach you
"While our maidenly hearts give us courage."
Sprouting fairy wings, the maiden flies around, spinning in delight, as the godmother claps her hands in time with the metronomic quality of this part of the music, as she does, more fantastical creations appear, fairy tale animals, animated tea cups and saucers. The buildings sprout legs and begin to walk about, swaying to and fro, as the fairy Ranka flies over the audience, aglow in pink as she sings overhead, her hands scattering hearts from side to side that rain over the audience.
"Living ends up warping your heart, huh?
"The weight of a dictionary-defined future is brick red."
As Ranka flies overhead, she cups her hands together and shouts to the audience, "Everyone together!" And indeed, on screens strategically placed around the seating areas and on holograms just a little above eye level, subtitles appear so that everyone can sing along, since it's a new song. The audience, waving their glowstick heart songs begins to echo the song. Even as Ranka blows upon a dandelion, its seeds fluttering down upon the audience, with tiny fairy Rankas holding onto each.
"I've got to do my best to live life
"I'm sure what I seek is in my heart
"So now open bearame."
Thousands fly down, each floating over the Audience, waving and smiling cheerfully at each of them. Some even reaching out - and should the audience members reach back, the moment they make contact. Each tiny fairy Ranka transforms, into a stuffed bear plushy, into a giant lollipop, into a squishy Osanshoo-san salamander, into a ribboned key wand. As the audience all cries out the magic word in the subtitles.
"Open Ranka!"
And as they do, the magic shines out through a keyhole, and each of them finds themselves changed. Shimmering, shining in a fairy tail outfit. A dress for the ball, or a princely tuxedo. Or they become a fairy themselves.
(OOC Note: Everyone is encouraged to describe themselves changing if they'd like! Though I'd ask people to keep in the spirit of it, and not make the change traumatic or undesirable. It is an extremely superficial change, a hologram.)
Flying over a desert, the godmother tips up her tophat, as an orange Osanshoo-san blobs out stretching and extending, flying through heart loops. However, even as it does so an ocean rises, and everyone finds the view filtered through underwater fairies riding upon colorful dolphins.
"My school uniform becomes a dress
"My schoolbag carries a single ocean
"I'll dump it out onto the desert
"And play with the dolphins in the forest."
Raising her legs in an exaggerated manner, the fairy godmother strolls down a narrow path of gold into a pink palace in the sky. Waving motions causing more and more magic to rise, as green hills appear around the castle she's heading towards.
"Dreams will come true to the rhythm of a stroll
"While our maidenly hearts give us courage."
The view changes again, to a blue grand piano rising in the sky, it's tipped at an angle, and the fairy maiden zooms across the keys in play, before hopping onto a treble clef, holding onto it as she rises into a galaxy of stars amidst so many other fairies. The stage turns as if the pages of a popup book, and briefly they are alit with a fiery landscape, out of a volcano, a Kaiju rising as it spews fumes and fiery clouds. However, before anyone could become concerned, the page turns again into a green landscape of conjoined flower petals and hearts in rings, dancing in the sunlight.
"A piano flies through the sky
"As stardust becomes musical notes.
"The monsters will sing
"And dance inside a picture book."
Fairy Rankas fly again amidst whales and teddy bears, only for the perspective to change to a single teddy bear that a single, smiling Ranka is holding up. The one becomes many, as again thousands fly over the audience. Each offering a teddy bear to an audience member. The fairy maiden, and the godmother singing and dancing to each of them as they do so - offering the magic, the wonder to all of them.
"The trails of love will cross a rainbow
"To reach you, I'm sure they'll reach you
"While our maidenly hearts give us courage
"While our maidenly hearts give us courage."
The instrumentals trail off, into shimmering notes, even as each fairy Ranka does the Kira pose in perfect synch. And then all light fades into a dark auditorium once more, as the audience channels its energy into applause.
<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.
Almost right after Shinji waves to Rikka, Akane comes up next to her and whispers something to her. The whispering is not that important, but Akane being here is. He blinks, lowering his hand. "Oh, it's Shinjo-senpai..." He smiles a little. "It's good to see her out in public. I hope she's not feeling too pressured..."
"I'm sure she isn't. Even if she is, she has Rikka there to support her. And Gridman and the others as well," Kaworu comments.
Shinji blinks again. "Gridman's--?" He looks around to spot him in the crowd, belatedly remembers that he's holding hands with Kaworu even after finding their seats, yelps as his face turns red, and slams both hands into his lap.
Kaworu of course doesn't say anything--doesn't outwardly seem upset, even. But Shinji would absolutely start spiraling about it were it not for the timely interruption of a stranger who happens to know Kaworu. (So many people know Kaworu. Shinji is in genuine awe of how wide his friend's social circle is.) "O-oh, hi!" he stammers back.
"You'll probably see many people you know," Kaworu tells Emilia affably. "It's pleasant to see you again."
Shinji bobs his head. Knowing Kaworu through GUTS sounds reasonable and so he doesn't question it. "U-um, it's nice to meet you. I'm, um, Shinji."
Even more timely is the start of the concert itself! Shinji takes a deep breath, glances over at Kaworu--who only smiles back at him, unoffended--and he relaxes as he smiles back. Part of him still feels guilty--shouldn't Kaworu be here with his boyfriend?--but... it's probably fine. Asuka and Rei aren't here either, as far as he knows.
Both of them watch the unfolding performance--the initially dark, dreary scene that blossoms into something bright and hopeful. Shinji's eyes widen in wonder--he's been to a Sheryl concert, so he's familiar with how the Macross songstresses can just holograms to enhance their performances, but that got interrupted by an attack. (He sure hopes this concert doesn't get interrupted by an attack.) Right now, he can just sit back and enjoy it.
Kaworu, for his part, likewise basks in the artistry that illuminates both Ranka's song and Ranka herself. It's charmingly fanciful, and the audience participation is a fine touch, from the walking buildings and Ranka's encouragement to have everyone sing along. Shinji doesn't have the nerve to sing along, and Kaworu would prefer to listen, but they do exchange a smile and wave their glowsticks with the rest of the crowd. Around them, people are superficially transformed by the fairies, before at last they're presented with teddy bears.
It really is a splendid number. Even the appearance of a holographic kaiju was more fantastical than alarming.
<Pose Tracker> Natarle Badgiruel has posed.
Natarle's military discipline and stiff bearing are famous. They're also famously poorly suited for an idol concert. She has, at least, forgone showing up in Londo Bell uniform, opting for a cropped jacket over a comfortable black dress. Something easy to move around in!
That said, she doesn't look comfortable at all - there's an audible sigh of relief when she spots bright red hair in the crowd and presses her way over. She is, at least, clutching a glowstick in one hand. She understands how important things like that are to the vibe!
"Oh thank god, MacKenzie. I was starting to worry I wouldn't see anyone I recognize here. I -- I was going out to La Tour on business for Bright, checking out stations, and --" She lets out a dry little bark of a laugh here, "Minmay comes on some station, and my dad was a Zent War vet, so I stop for all of twenty seconds to see if I recognize it, and we're two bars into Tenshi no Enogu when Judson leans in from the backseat and--"
She dips into a contralto that is, given some allowance for her strong Britannian accent, a reasonable facsimile of the talented Judson Bang, "Do you seriously only listen to Zentie music? This is a rescue mission, boss."
"And then he wouldn't shut up until I agreed to buy a ticket. Anyway you can probably tell but I'm super out of my comfort zone here, so you're stuck with me, MacKenzie." She sighs, the whole thing having basically been one aggressive run-on sentence, and glances down at the Haro accompanying Chris. "Recording... Ms. Ashta still stuck at home? Mm. I... Well, she'll hear it from me when there's less on her plate, but I always respected Sayla. I hope things turn around... she's got me and Koji if she needs us, no questions asked, I'm sure."
A tilt towards the stage, and the glowstick snaps up when the music starts with reflexive precision. It takes her a moment to really take it in, but...
"Well, she does have a lovely voice."
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
From the growing crowd, a voice! Rikka pauses and looks up - she cracks a bit of a smile at the sight of Knight, but elects to leave him to his concert, before eventually falling on Shinji.
"Hey, Shinji! -Oh, Kaworu, too!" Rikka waves back. It has been a while - it's good to see him around. "I hope you both enjoy the concert!"
...And, in this time, Akane has appeared. Rikka receives a pleasant surprise as she gives her a quick peck on the cheek before settling in and taking her hand. Rikka offers her a smile.
"I'm glad it worked out. I'm always happy to grab a concert with you." Rikka replies - and then she perks up just a little as Akane leans in closer and whispers something in her ear. She looks right at her for a brief second - but it seems whatever she whispered will remain a secret between them...
...Which is just as well, because there's other friends nearby! Rikka smiles and offers Alouette a wave.
"I'm kind of curious, too... It's hard to predict where she'll go next, but that isn't a bad thing." She says - and then, with her free hand, waves toward Gridman and Vit.
"Hey, Gridman! Vit! Over here!" Rikka calls out. If they want to watch the concert on their own, that's fine - but she's not going to make them do that if they're fine with company!
...And, besides, she'd seen the way Akane started slouching in on herself as people filtered in. Crowds are still tough... Maybe they'd be easier with friends as a buffer, though.
She goes quiet, though, as the light dims and, eventually, Ranka appears on stage. A cruel, unforgiving world... and then she's visited by a fairy godmother... and the dark world gives way to a fairy tale. The imagery is bright and vibrant, and the lyrics...
Well, she does find herself singing along in the audience participation portions! And, as the magic falls over Rikka...!
She looks down on herself in surprise, at first, and then with a nod of approval as an elegant tuxedo has interposed itself over her outfit. Dark blue like the night sky, with spots of glimmering silver like snowfall reflected in the light of the moon...
She looks toward Akane, too, to see how she reacts... especially when the kaiju appears. And the song eventually trails off...
"...That was pretty impressive. She sure knows how to start off strong. She really upped her game on the visual effects, too." Rikka considers.
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
It's a liiiittle tricky for Asciel to transition from her own stream to addressing Alouette - so the first thing she does, before Alouette even speaks, is to pivot the camera, to make it a conversation on-video. A neat transition from a simple stick to a mounted armature hooked onto the car's side mirrors. "So this Ranka's done this song and dance before, you say.~ I neglected to look her up, though that might be for the best to avoid any preconceptions. After all, every performance is different, and you can't cater every individual session of yours assuming everyone knows all your previous ones."
Asciel reconsiders just a little, tapping a half-gloved finger to her lips. "Well, there's a few visual performance artists who have more of a storyline thing going on, but even that's a rare event, and takes some time to cultivate, and you've gotta accept a slimmer but more dedicated audience. ...hmm. Hmm. That's actually not a bad idea...Maybe I'll ensure you get invites to a project like that, Alouette~"
Asciel does devote a liiiittle bit of her processing to keeping tabs on Alouette as she waves her off, and who she gravitates towards. (Even if it doesn't look like she's watching, she's tapped into a few key security cameras - tracking the movements of key individuals is her specialty!) Akane and Rikka...she can only really assume. What, fellow maids? Students? GGG colleagues? Asciel files them away as 'just some other humans' and that file probably pretty quickly enters the recycle bin.
...One particular outlier enters Asciel's notice much more prominently now.
And Yuta's phone rings. Exactly two times, before ~telecommunications screwery~ forces it to answer, and to speaker at that, Asciel's voice blaring out at max volume. "Hiiiiiii there, can't help but notice the ~Brave Police~ of all people here. You're one of the ones that can turn into a car or whatnot, if I remember right! Friendly advice, you should probably join my coordinates over here and pretend you're like, from a movie or a game or something. It'll be easier for you to blend in, and we can make a little car show!~" Her ulterior motives for the mysterious invitation are...to be unveiled!
The show begins, and one of the few ways to get Asciel to shut up commences - she's quiet for the whole song, gratefully. ...The cheery, heart-warming stuff has never really been her speed, naturally, as the rising star in more countercultural entertainment that tries a little too hard to be intellectual. Teddy bears...bubbles and candy...what exactly did she sign up for here?
...but- she is listening to the lyrics intently, even as the rather lavish visual effects threaten to overwhelm. And laced carefully in there...the themes of simple realization of imagination - the courage and willpower it takes. At the end of the day, the clear power Ranka has is to gently melt hearts - and a harsh, cold-iron one like Asciel's is far from immune. It's almost worrying for a moment, but when it comes to the tune of music, even an idol of repulsion can, for just a moment, uncover a single lock.
The first few moments of dismissive endurance give way to a simple joining of the chorus. With her heart-shaped glowstick raised high, Asciel lets herself call out in unison, "Open Ranka!~~"
>oh no what wait why do i feel this way nooooo
>'~Open bearame!~' -why did that emit stooop uuuu
<Pose Tracker> Chloe has posed.
The concert starts up and Coco can be seen swaying her body a little to the upbeat music, a smile on her face. She's a bit more reserved than many of the fans. Though no where near as reserved as Chloe, who remains quite still as she watches closely. Did she really take that teasing about a test to be the truth?
As the song continues, Coco muses, "It's a lovely song. Quite whimsical, wouldn't you say?"
Chloe pauses in thought for a moment, before saying, "None of it really makes much sense."
Coco mmmms in thought, placing a finger to her chin. Before suggesting, "Maybe it's because you're listening with your ears? Try listening with your heart!"
Chloe looks... Confused! But nonetheless replies, "Very well..."
A little further in and people are singing along. Coco can't join in, for obvious reasons, but she's able to guess as to what's happening. Of course, when Chloe doesn't join in, Coco is not surprised but decides not to press her too much. Baby steps! Still, as the fairies descend upon the audience and they cry out the magic words, Coco can sense that something has changed and she asks, "What's going on?"
Chloe replies calmly, "It appears our clothes have been changed by holograms."
Coco wonders, "Oh? What have mine been changed to?"
Looking, Chloe describes, "A white dress, seemingly designed for fancy events."
Coco mmmmms playfully, "Ah... Not a big change, I suppose. How about you?"
Glancing down at herself, Chloe sees the tuxedo that now overlays the usual uniform she's always wearing. Again she calmly describes, "A tuxedo, it would seem."
Coco giggles at that, "Now THAT is something. I wish I could see it... I shall have to settle for imagining it!" She places her fingers to her temples and humms for a moment, face slightly scrunched up on thought, before exclaiming, "Ah hah! There it is."
Chloe turns to look at Coco, asking, "How can you imagine it? You aren't aware of what I look like."
Coco shakes her head knowingly with a smile, "Not true. I know exactly what you look like, Chloe. You look like you!"
Chloe looks confused again.
<Pose Tracker> Garrod Ran has posed.
Garrod's cutting it really close, but he gets to his seat just before the light go dim and the glowsticks start coming on, even though he needs to slip past a few familiar faces at the last second. He doesn't even have time to sit down before Ranka takes the stage ...
... twice? Two Rankas?
Part of him is stubborn enough to be analytical and figure out how they're doing it - but he's also young enough to push that question aside and relish the magic. He makes sure his glowstick is the right color and joins in the waving ...
"Open Ranka!!" he calls out with the chorus, and the hologram wraps around him, forming stylized white armor, a longbow sheathed across his back, a gold crest gleaming on his helmet. Even with that, though, he seems more interested in the other transformations around him - and more than that, seeing what other magic Ranka is going to usher into life on-stage.
<Pose Tracker> Christina MacKenzie has posed.
Chris has been to Eden once before, due to a power grid outage she'd heard about through her AE ex-coworkers. When she'd gotten there, she despaired to realize that the power issues were a mundane affair, and some of the residents hadn't even realized it had broken down any worse than usual. It had been the self-sufficient district that had complained.
It was a perfect example of the complacency of the well-off.
Yet with that sorrow in mind, she bore a smile on the trip alongside Knight. That an idol would draw such attention to the Side 1 colonies... It was an example of the hope that she'd begun to believe in. Maybe, little by little, this world can change.
Knight's endearing show of support was no small factor, either, haha. The puppybangs looked surprisingly good on the dour man, like a bulldog that couldn't quite help looking like it was frowning, even when it was overjoyed.
"Thank you, Knight! I'll be sure to use it proudly! You're going to the high seats, right? Mind if XAIRO tags along? I thought I'd relay the concert to the Villa, since some of us stayed home." Since he didn't slow down to disagree, Chris nudged Xairo along after him. After Ranka's debut concert, she didn't want to take up quite so much space.
'Some of us.' 'Us.' Without quite realizing it, her family had grown larger, not through new meetings, but through...no longer running away. For instance, though she'd once been confused by the seeming stiffness of Knight's full-name greetings, spending more time firmly at the Villa let her understand him better--it isn't necessarily enforcing distance, it's just part of his quirks. He is, after all, Akane's sibling, and she's a complicated one herself.
No sooner did Chris think about the kaiju enthusiast, than she spotted--Well, really she spotted Rikka, but who else could that be nestled next to her? Chris started to move towards her, and noticed she wasn't alone in doing so.
Mairo nestled in her arms and plastered with Ranka decals, Chris swung into the solar system of Kaworu and Shinji, Alouette and Emmy, Vit and Gridman, Akane and Rikka. She's wondering if she shouldn't intrude on any of them when a familiar face bursts onto her radar, reaching out to her with relief in her voice--
"Capt--ah, sorry--Natarle, you're here too?" When her greeting is met with a gatling of exposition, Chris can't help but laugh, and reach out to steady the woman's arm. "Easy, easy. You're welcome to form up on me, Natarle, I've got my other Haro on video duty. You look..." Oh jeez. "You look really good, but a bit out of place... here, let me..."
Chris shifts Mairo so that she can fish in her merch bag, pulling out a puppy-bang headband and adding it to Natarle's outfit.
"There we go! You grew up listening to Minmay too, huh?"
That's when the lights dim, shift, and suffuse the stage with a spooky aura...Chris is bracing for another crit hit when golden magic revitalizes the scene, and a gentle rainbow blooms over even this heartbroken girl. Chris raises her glowheart to the sky, and oohs at the fae Rankas as they pass! When one descends on her, she offers it the glowstick to land on, and her spirit shirt is awash with gleaming light, shimmering like city lights on the wate.! Open Ranka! She turns to set Mairo free just in time for the sparkling to consume her entirely!
"No, how cute?! This couldn't possibly be *me*, could it?!" Chris can be heard saying, before the gleam resolves into gossamer wings, a dashing floral garb, floor-length. An iridescent flower sits tucked into her hair, and she's too astounded to even be shy about it
<Pose Tracker> Emilia Eschonbach has posed.
Emmy gives Shinji a small, earnest smile. "I-It's a b-b-bit overwhelming, i-isn't it?" She says, gently. "I find it g-gets a bit easier. Once the music st-starts." She's been in his shoes before, the nervous, shy person with someone stronger supporting them.
Emilia gives a nod to Kaworu. "Y-yeah. You're right. A l-lot of p-p-people came out to support R-Ranka, huh?" Still, she smiles. "I-It's good to see you t-t-too. It's b-been too long."
It seems, initially, like a grim start to the show. Emilia grips the handle of her glowstick tightly, watching the girl on the stage, in the shabby dress. The chanting of magic words... Even this early Emilia's eyes fixate on the stage. As the fairy godmother appears, well...
A girl as raised on fairytales as Emilia knows a Cinderella story when she sees one.
The way the girl runs away from the Fairy Godmother... that's a familiar feeling and Emilia feels a pang of familiar pain. It's not too far from who she was, when Milly and Kallen and Ranka came into her life. Desperately lonely and scared of kindness- ready to lash out at it.
What a difference a few months of people not giviong up made.
But as the world unfolds into a magical kingdom, the bleakness falling away, Emmy's eyes are open with wonder. This is something on par with what Sheryl would put out, tailor made to Ranka's style.
As the subtitles appear, Emmy does her best to sing along, even with her stammer getting in the way. It's a little tricky, and she can't quite finish the lyrics in time, but some certain advice about Karaoke comes back to her- 'it's about putting your heart into it'.
"O-Open Ranka!" She shouts with the song- and the 'magic' of the fairy flies over her.
Gone are the t-shirt and simple skirt and leggings and sneakers, replaced with an eggshell blue sleevless dress that poofs out, mathcing long gloves that go up to her biceps, and a black choker around her neck that seems to incorporate a golden locket. Atop her head sits a silver silver circlet, adorned with a amethysts.
For a single shining moment, she looks every part the fairytale princess herself, a smile on her lips as she looks down at herself, before looking out at the others in the crowd, seeing how they have changed.
Still, there's something very powerful about Ranka being her own fairy godmother. It speaks to her making her own dreams come true.
She's so engrossed in the song, letting the lyrics wash over her and sink into her heart, caught up in the wonder of the moment.
"Ranka's... r-r-really something, i-isn't she?" She says as the song ends, just loud enough to be overheard.
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
"I don't think this would be my kind of scene if you weren't part of my life... but it's definitely fun." While she's still kind of struggling with the environment, it's... getting easier. This is certainly a better go of it than a couple of previous large social events.
It does indeed get easier with more friends around. Akane notices Kaworu and Shinji, and a moment later, Alouette; she distributes the appropriate waves, but doesn't gesture Kaworu and Shinji over or anything. She doesn't want to crowd them... and she knows how important the experience of good music is to Kaworu.
(She's not sure how she feels about the Kaworu-Shinji... thing, at the moment, knowing that Gridman's dating Kaworu. ... it's not really her business to fuss, though.)
"I'm glad it worked out too," she agrees. The look at her gets a knowing giggle, before Akane, too, is distracted by More Friends again.
Seeing Gridman brings a big smile to Akane's face -- and despite the fact that he seems nervous, Akane tries to discreetly wave him over after a moment. It's not like she was planning for this to be a date, and Gridman is her strongest friend. She's about to open her mouth to call, and --
Rikka does it. ... Aahhh, it's nice.
The song starts before too much longer, though, and at first Akane struggles with it a bit. The nonsense words, the saccharine aesthetic -- those things aren't really her vibe --
'For the longest time, the sky made me feel lonely somewhere inside.'
Music is, as always, the key to one's heart -- and while it's 'Open Ranka,' maybe it's Akane's heart that opens a bit more. She scoots into Rikka, hand clinging now; there's a smile on her face, but she's almost crying, at the same time...
Akane... struggles with gifts, a bit, at least this type of very magical gift; as the moment swells, though, and she gets carried on by the music, she reaches for a wand. She pulls it close, and a moment later, she finds herself in a greyish-purple dress with deep teal and gold trim, holding a lantern full of starlight in her other hand.
For a moment, she's a little startled, but -- "W-wow," she stammers out. ... Even if you don't like the first few forms, transformation's still something nice, huh. Even the kaiju doesn't dredge up any unpleasant feelings; after all, it's but one page in a story that's continuing...
... yeah, that's about right.
Letting out a content little sigh, Akane wipes at her face with the back of her wrist a bit, still holding the holographic wand.
When the song at last fades out...
"She's incredible," Akane says, a little starstruck. "It's kinda hard to believe this is the same Ranka, but... I -- ahaha --" She's tearing up a little bit again, and starts outright sniffling.
<Pose Tracker> Gridman has posed.
Gridman is noticed! He brightens up, waving with his glowstick back to Rikka. "Do you mind, Vit?" He asks, beaming in the evening light.
"Go for it." Vit says, reaching down to fix Gridman's hair and straighten the collar of his shirt. "I'll hang out back here where I have a better view of things, but you go have fun. This is what summer's for. Kids running around."
Gridman laughs at his fussing, offering a quick 'thanks!' before he hurries over to meet Akane, Alouette, and Rikka. "It's great to see you here! I thought I was going to be the only one!" Gridman smiles, scratching the side of his cheek. "I promised Ranka I'd support her, so I'm trying to make sure to go to all her concerts."
Shinji and Kaworu are nearby and Gridman waves to them without guile. "You guys are welcome to hang out if you want! It's okay either way."
Even if Shinji is a little anxious, Kaworu will understand. Gridman isn't the jealous sort, especially knowing the near-sacred bond between the two young men.
Right as he gets settled with his friends, the first song begins! Gridman cheers loudly, waving his glowstick with enough enthusiasm to probably give someone a concussion should they come into range. Spellbound as the song begins, Gridman, of course, sings along with the song. It's more an exercise in enthusiasm than any vocal talent.
(In the background, Vit snaps a picture of the teenagers singing together, smiling to himself.)
Osanshoo-san makes an appearance, and Gridman somehow cheers even louder. "I know him!" He says, nonsensically, pulling his own red phone version of the creature from his pocket.
"Open Ranka!"
Light shines over the crowd, and transformations begin! Gridman blinks widely (once, then twice), and finds himself in a dazzling ensemble -- a tuxedo with tails that seem more like skirts. Pixelated fairy wings glimmer at his back, as brilliant red as his hair, and he spins in place trying to see them.
"No way." Gridman breathes, then holds Osanshoo-san out. Not knowing how long the magic will last, he wants to get a picture right away..! "Akane, Alouette, Rikka! Let's take a picture like this!"
(In the background, Vit has been granted wings of his own, in the same pixelated aesthetic as Gridman's. He looks at them with bemusement. "Ruining my image, huh, Ranka?")
The fairy tale goes on, and Gridman only startles a little at the appearance of the spectacular kaiju. It's enough to make him check in with his friends, just as Rikka does -- but everyone seems okay, and the kaiju only appeared for a moment, anyway. Once the teddy bears arrive, his momentary distress is long forgotten.
Oshansoo-san floats nearby Gridman's shoulder as he hugs the teddy bear close. Akane seems to be sniffling, and Gridman, worried, turns to her.
"Hey, you alright?" He asks, quietly, not wanting to draw attention to her emotions. "It's a lot, I get you."
<Pose Tracker> BP-110 Deckerd has posed.
"Huh? How-"
Yuta seems confused by the force call, meanwhile, Deckerd, who overheard and recognized the voice, just frowns incredibly deeply. He's not averse to picking up their conversation from last time, but between her eccentric personality, to put it lightly, and not knowing what she's planning, he really doesn't want to. However, if he doesn't, he's not sure what she'd do, so he begins moving even before Yuta says anything, which causes him to let out a small screech as he has to rebalance himself and keep the camera steady.
"Sorry, Yuta, but it's best to entertain her for now."
Speaking of entertaining, though, he should probably follow her advice on acting a little less suspicious. Somehow. He doesn't really think she thought this through, there's really no way to disguise himself in a way that doesn't draw attention, but sure. Running some scenarios through his head, he comes to the conclusion that his best bet is to, funnily enough, just act like a robot, which he does, walking carefully through part of the crowd in an extremely stiff manner while spouting a bunch of canned, cartoonish gibberish.
It's fine. It's definitely fine. He keeps telling himself this even as Yuta's face grows red from embarrassment up until they've reached Asciel's location.
"You have us, now what do you want?"
"Yeah! What the heck do you want, I ain't got time to do my job, I'm currently fighting for my life right now!"
Yuta doesn't really elaborate, he just points to the cam he's holding, as Deckerd lets out an audible sigh. Thankfully, the concert begins shortly after to give him some brief respite.
Neither Yuta or Deckerd sing, Yuta because he's a stubborn little boy, and Deckerd because he's just simply too embarrassed too. However, they do participate in interacting with the special effects.
They're both rather predictably clothed in rather fancy tuxedos, with Yuta even getting a fancy little hat and mask. Deckerd is a lot more plain, in fact, on closer inspection, his 'tuxedo' is just a slight repaint of his usual look. Some would argue it's 'lazy', but the sane would argue that it's rather unreasonable to expect anything more for someone who stands five meters tall and isn't made of flesh.
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
Alouette quickly realizes she's on-stream. She didn't plan for this, but she wonders if Asciel's fanbase is familiar with her by now. That's kind of awkward... Still, she speaks as if she is not in fact being recorded. "That's one way to think about it..." She concedes. "As for me? I'm interested in seeing how Ranka grows... it's a first for me to witness an idol's career from the very start." She explains.
As for Asciel's offer for her, specifically, her eyes light up ever so slightly. "That would definitely be fun, considering your performance style, Asciel. And I think you underestimate the sheer dedication of your audience!" This time, she specifically smiles to them. "So if you ever need my assistance... I'm always open." She is not aware she's being watched on the way out, though... but it doesn't seem to put her friends in danger.
"Alouette waves back when Rikka and Akane do, a slight smile forming on her face. And she's happy to see Gridman's beckoned over, too. "Watching a concert's best with friends, of course! Especially since we're all here in the first place~" What would be the point of sitting and experiencing the magic alone? Kaworu and Shinji also get a wave from her. They're as busy people as they are young, so she's glad they get to enjoy themselves too. Even if she tries not to overthink the hand holding situation.
She also recognizes Emilia in the crowd, nearby Kaworu. "Bonjour, Emilia!" She waves back to one of her newer friends, with an open and warm expression - understanding Emmy's hesitation.
Finally the music begins! Alouette vibes with it from the onset, enjoying the strange 'mystic' vibe of the song. She gradually begins to understand the message - joy and wonder belongs to us all. Even someone as jaded as her gives it a chance, smiling along with the fairies, becoming invested in the story that unfolds before their eyes.
A transformation occurs...! She peers down at herself, and finds the stylized, sleek armour of a knight (but not The Knight, who's watching from above), even if she doesn't feel the weight of it against her. Matched with a pleated red cape - she accepts her role in this Fairy Tale with a wide smile.
A wide smile memorialized in a photo as Gridman offers to snap a picture like this. "Say Open Ranka~" She cheers, before the picture is taken. She's eager to see the roles her friends have taken on, of course. As expected, they fit them perfectly, as she admires Rikka's dapper tux and Akane's beautiful dress, as well as Gridman's something in between in particular.
<Pose Tracker> Ranka Lee has posed.
The spotlights come on again soon enough, to alight center stage, as Ranka walks back on, alit in that pink glow and the fairy maiden's outfit. "Thank you all for coming out tonight! Did everyone enjoy that one? All of you are the first to hear it!" Ranka beams to all of them, "It's the first song I've written myself, up until now, all of my songs have been written with the support of people close to me. I couldn't do this without them! I still can't, even writing my first song - it feels like just another step on this journey."
Taking more steps forward, the key wand is raised like a microphone. "And I'm glad to be walking it with all of you. It is your support that allowed me to get where I am today! So, thank you very much, Side 1!" With that, she bobs into a polite box, before raising up, and smiling. "So, question to all of you! Are any of you out there on a date tonight with someone very special?" Ranka puts a hand to her ear, listening for the cheers of the people who are.
"Or maybe you have your eye on someone special?" More cheers at that one, and Ranka beams at her crowd, "Love is hard work isn't it? Some might even call it a battlefield sometimes. Expressing your feelings, putting yourself out there - making it work with someone else-! And- me?" She puts a hand to her chest, "I grew up on the image of Variable Fighters, leaving our Colony, so I use a different word entirely."
Ranka winks to her audience, before calling out what's becoming her catch phrase.
"EVERYONE! EMBRACE EACH OTHER! TO THE ENDS OF THE UNIVERSE!"
BGM Change - Love is a Dogfight - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-94udtouSA
In that moment, Ranka vanishes as chiptunes and synthesized instrumentals begin, and center stage which was once fairy tale cobbles becomes instead a hexagonal launch platform, in the pouring rain. Lights fall upon a red variable fighter as it rises up, the cockpit opening as Ranka appears in an outfit that is reminiscent of an anthromorphized variable fighter. A white bralette with pink trim, shoulder pauldrons, white short shorts, a yellow headband with a pink V, and an antenna. Her legs are encased in white thighboots, and gloves sheathe her arms past the elbow. A hand over her face as she sings while standing in the cockpit.
"Even if I'm in a dark rain
"That pours so hard I want to cry
"Above the clouds, the blue sky shines bright enough to dazzle me."
The hand slowly drops, and the perspective changes to a sky overhead, a liminal space between blue sky and dark clouds and space, where variable fighters are locked in struggles for their life, but whenever one is tagged, they only explode into hearts as if the visuals implied a different struggle than life or death. More a dance between two hearts. Her own variable fighter starts to rise, as she flies through the rain and the crowds while staying level with the audience, dancing in place in her open cockpit, trailing colorful contrails as she glides across the clouds.
"C'mon, take off
"From the planet of one-sided love
"Pierce through the clouds of hesitation
"As your heart pounds out
"A supersonic beat
"I want to convey my love faster than with words
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh."
Ranka's red variable fighter suddenly comes up on two other fighters in pink and blue, placing a finger to her lips, she makes a motion like she's going to blow it, but it becomes a fingergun instead. There is a synth chime like a fighter locking on her variable fighter erupting with missiles that chase down both planes, who swerve as if to dodge. As Ranka dances in place, swaying from side to swide as if undeterred by their efforts to evade. Moving to chase after one, however it becomes indistinct whether it's the pink or the blue variable fighter as she does so and her fighter gets on it's tail.
"I'm gonna fire every kiss missile I've got
"Gonna lock on with my bouncing chest
"Love is a dog fight
"A loving cross fight
"Miracles spin 'round
"The skies, my hair, the city, my eyes
"The two of us spin 'round like flies
"Love is a dog fight
"A loving cross fight
"Miracles spin 'round."
The two fighters start doing loops, crossing over each other again and again in the aerial acrobatics, for a time the audience unable to see Ranka as the two fighters skywrite hearts that appear amidst their stunts. The aerial fight amidst the blue clouds soon gives way to darker clouds again, as Ranka's fighter flies beneath them, flashes light up the clouds, as she lifts her hand as if in a yearning gesture...
"Even if I'm in a dark rain
"That pours so hard I want to cry, 'I won't hesitate'
"It seems like you can see them, but you can't
"The future, the heart, even when they're frozen
"The stars burn so hot they fill up the Milky Way."
The fighter ascends abruptly, above the blue horizon, into space. Flying amidst colorful nebulas and spirals of stars, banking into turns and carrying the idol into space, as she places a hand upon her chest. The fighter inverting even as it picks up speed into a blur of light. Her other hand making sharp staccato motions.
"C'mon, nose up
"Out of the lonely darkness
"Release the limiter of your chest
"Turn upside-down and
"Super fall in love
"I want to feel a love that's faster than light
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
The landscape changes again, and now it's two variable fighters joined by a bar, spinning round and round in centrifugal motions. Each one chasing the other infinitely, as Ranka divides into the hundreds. They move in an Ouroboros, an infinity of chasing each other.
"I'm gonna fire every kiss missile I've got
"Gonna lock on with my bouncing chest
"Love is a dog fight
"A loving cross fight
"Miracles spin 'round
"Time, dreams, wounds, tears
"The two of us spin 'round like flies
"Love is a dog fight
"A loving cross fight
"Miracles spin 'round."
Before long, the variable fighter and pilot move to being one again, another flies in parallel, its cockpit down as a hand reaches out to her. Crossing her arms over her chest, she hugs herself, moving side to side as she crouches down as if longing for the embrace of another, and coming up short because of the gap between them.
"I want to
"Hold you tight at 17 G's
"'You'd really think' you can see them, but you can't
"The future, the heart, even when they're frozen
"Even if I'm in a dark rain
"That pours so hard I want to cry, 'I love you'
"Above the clouds, I'll trace trails of love into the stars."
Rising sharply, it breaks through the clouds, cresting upwards from the blue sky into the vacuum of space, rotating round and round - moving faster and faster until-
"I'll rise so high I touch the vacuum of space and
"Ah~ black out!"
In time with the 'black out' all lighting vanishes, and the view of the variable fighter fades, as if the moment of breathless unconsciousness greeted everyone. The applause begins again shortly after, amidst the sea of glowstick hearts.
<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.
With the concert already started and the stands quite full, Shinji doesn't spot Christina--but Kaworu does, and he smiles her way at precisely the moment she happens to be looking over at the two of them. It seems Christina won't need them to describe the concert to her after all. Akane gets a smile of greeting too--and Shinji already waved her and Rikka's way earlier, so he's satisfied to get a wave back.
For his part, Shinji relaxes a little when Emilia commisserates, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah... I've been to concerts before and it's always a little much... but I really like music, so it's worth it. Ranka-san's is especially great... She's got such a sweet, soothing voice, and she's so nice in person, too."
"Yes," Kaworu agrees, looking back at him and Emilia. He smiles back, eyes squinting shut, and not commenting on how long it's been. Instead, he says, "She's worthy of all of it."
Gridman calls over to them to invite them to hang out--and Shinji glances at Kaworu. "You should go," he murmurs, nudging him a little with his shoulder.
But Kaworu only smiles back. "It's nice to see Gridman get to spend some time with Akane and Rikka. We can spend time with him afterwards."
Shinji scratches his cheek, wondering how someone like Kaworu could miss the point so badly... but he waves back at Gridman--and at Alouette too (Kaworu favors her with a smile), spotting her elsewhere in the crowd. "A little later!" he calls back, though he's too timid to raise his voice very high for fear of bothering the other concert attendants, so who knows if he'll hear him.
And who knows if he'll live down the hand-holding. He let go by now, but so many people he actually knows have already seen.........
Fortunately, the concert proceeds apace, this time with Ranka announcing that she wrote that number just now herself. Shinji makes an impressed sound, while Kaworu chuckles softly. The question from the Super Dimensional Cinderella of who's here on a ~*date*~ gets a new red blush out of Shinji. He fidgets, but he very much does NOT cheer back. Maybe he should've brought Asuka, but no matter how new an experience it probably would be for her, he just can't imagine her liking a scene like this...
Kaworu doesn't cheer back, either. Shinji is indeed very special, but he's just a friend. He accepts that.
The new song is a lot more fast-paced and upbeat, simultaneously a love song and a battle theme--after all, Love is a Dogfight. It's easy to get into it, and Shinji watches the dance/airshow with an increasing smile, one heel pumping to the beat as he waves his glowstick. The embarrassment he felt earlier easily melts away with everyone else doing the same, including Kaworu right next to him. It's really different from a lot of her other songs in terms of the music composition, but it's kind of getting him pumped up...!
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
"I'm glad I could help you appreciate it." Rikka replies, offering Akane a smile. It's indicative of the way they've affected each other's live, helped them discover things they wouldn't have considered without the influence of the other. And then Gridman hurries over to them, Rikka smiling and offering a wave as he approaches.
"It's great to see you too. It seems like we all kind of decided to go on our own." Rikka replies with a small laugh.
"Absolutely." Rikka agrees, when Alouette says that a concert's best with friends.
And the music... Rikka can see how deeply it's affected Akane. The way she scoots into her, clinging, smiling and almost crying at the same time...
And Akane too, transforms - and for a second Rikka stares in awe before eventually managing a...
"Wow." She echoes, and smiles. "You look incredible."
Gridman and Alouette's outfits are both stunning, as well. And, Gridman makes a suggestion!
"Open Ranka~." Rikka chimes in with Alouette, smiling for the picture.
Eventually, the song fades.
"She is." Rikka agrees with Akane about Ranka. "Right? There's something about the stage that seems to give her strength. Or... maybe helps her draw out the strength she already has."
Akane sniffles, and Rikka squeezes her hand gently, leaning in a bit to offer her her shoulder if she needs it.
And then, the spotlights return! Rikka listens intently to Ranka. ...Well, she didn't come here with the intent of a date, but she did end up with with her someone very special anyway.
Love... it is hard work, though. But she doesn't regret any bit of that.
Ranka vanishes... and reappears, dressed as a Variable Fighter! ...It's a pretty cute look, actually. Rikka makes a mental note.
Love is a dog fight, huh... It's very catchy, and, well -
...It's really good. She can really relate to it, in a way.
"That one was... pretty good." Rikka replies. "I can really relate to that one..."
<Pose Tracker> Natarle Badgiruel has posed.
Natarle tilts her head agreeably enough, settling in the headband... and grinning a bit as Chris tries to manage a dozen things at once.
"Yeah! I mean, military brat - base culture's just kinda like that, especially once the Zentradi volunteers started folding in. Nice to see you out again, Chris."
The wings do get a little gasp from her, and her eyes do hang a moment on Chris's look... though they're drawn back up to the stage when the next song starts.
This one seems much more her vibe, at least enough to get that glowstick enthusiastically swinging. Maybe it's just the imagery being a little more her speed, or the pace of it, but it's hard to deny the grin spreading. There's a moment of awkwardness, of course - how long has it been since she could take a day like this? But that's all the more reason to embrace it and enjoy the atmosphere. She lets herself sway and bounce a little, and just exist in the crowd.
By the time the song winds down, she's joined the applause, and she sighs a little bit and spares Chris another little sideways glance.
"Honestly, I'd love to do stuff like this more often... but I'm not even done with stuff this week. Bright's considering us for security detail... Half the time, we're on 'redundant' assignment with Fed forces, just for oversight. Not that I can blame him..."
She shakes her head. "Ugh. I don't wanna talk about work. I just... Look, what have you been up to? You look a lot more... settled, than when we met up at Boss's place."
<Pose Tracker> Garrod Ran has posed.
'Are any of you out there on a date tonight ... ?'
Garrod winces at that. He really wants to be. But ... the follow-up question? He absolutely does have his eye on somebody, and in response to that question, he cheers with enough gusto to make up for his preceding silence, pumping his glowstick in the air - and like that, he's back into the swing of the concert. Ranka's 'armor' is an incredibly cute look on her, he has to admit - and the lyrics to 'Love is a Dogfight' have a different rhythm and energy than he can remember from inside a mobile suit's cockpit, whether his familiar Gundam or a borrowed mecha. And it's a good song in its own right, which is really the important part.
... plus, he may like Ranka more than he liked Sheryl Nome. He's definitely an enthusiastic fan here and now.
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
Even though they didn't coordinate, they ended up here, together, in this moment; it's nice, in its way, for that to happen. When Gridman suggests a photo, Akane nods, agreeing, "I'd love to have something to remember this by." Rikka gets a giggle and a, "You too," though Akane does her best to arrest her fantasizing momentum. She glances back to the person Alouette was talking to briefly -- then a little further around and sees Knight, too.
... It does make sense; he'd always been a music fan.
There's a brief flare of guilt for yelling at him for breaking away to save Ranka, all those months ago, seeing both of them in the same place. ... She shoves it away before too long, though. Rikka had been right last night -- she deserves to be here, even if rehabilitation is still a work in progress. Turning her attention to the camera, she gives it a warm, "Open Ranka!"
Gridman asks if she's doing okay, after the picture -- and she nods, saying, "It just -- was a lot, yeah." Laughing nervously, she agrees, "I'm good."
Hearing 'Yuta' addressed again gets a little bit of a 'huh?' from Akane and a glance over to -- a much smaller Yuta. And a robot. Wait -- oh! Right, that must be one of the Brave Police... she's at least somewhat aware of them as institutional partners. She definitely feels safer with Deckerd around.
When the next Ranka song hits... this one doesn't get Akane as much on the lyrics, but she sees that it is getting Rikka a little bit... she thinks she knows why, and when Rikka admits to having it hit for her, Akane teases, "I'd like to hold you at any number of Gs~"
Turning to Alouette, she finally thinks to add, "Oh, by the way -- the knight look was killer on you. I always kinda liked Western-style military stuff, even going that far back... It's a really different vibe from modern Japanese."
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
Oh we absolutely love to see it. Asciel absolutely cannot restrain giggling behind both hands as Deckerd and Yuta gallivant their way over to the grassy area outside the stage that the Rankamobile is parked at. It's a pleasure genuinely as simple as 'telling the police to do something and they do it' at this stage.
Sitting saucily atop the Rankamobile (its owner, incidentally, absolutely went wild at being tossed a wand during the first song), Asciel immediately makes her introduction...by twisting around on the hood, angling her camera just right, and taking a big picture peace-signing with Deckerd and Yuta's heads right in frame.
"So, you two. It's been quite some time!~ Good that you're willing to listen to your big sister." (Unfortunately Asciel is right, but not in the way she thinks!) "Relax, relax! You're at the exact kind of concert that should enlighten you. The power of music is invigorating. Inspiring, even! And it's the purest expression of everyone's hopes and dreams. Look, take it in! All Ranka has to do is make her chorus clear one time, and the audience knows exactly how to follow! It's so...it's so efficient~"
The human (if tall for a human) -sized Asciel is certainly talking to Deckerd in particular in that same way as she did when it felt oh so much like she might be a sneaky super AI . . . but . . . it's certainly difficult with current technology to cram one into a human-sized frame, right?
(Her actual core is parked about a mile away in an undeveloped forest area!)
Ranka's next performance returns Asciel to her rather enraptured, especially with the creative use of Variable Fighters in the performance. Ranka truly understands! The purpose of these weapons is performance - if they were as dancing fairies, they'd control the show and save the world!
Her fingers rise and aim as a two-handed finger-gun towards Ranka's 'backup dancers', so to speak - and she mimes shooting down every missile of love, getting better and better at timing her shots to right when they 'explode' in a hail of digital effects.
"...the planet of one-sided love, she says." A wistful little sigh when the stage goes black, as Asciel turns her stare upwards - to where the distant blue planet she thinks so much of treasuring hovers through a window in the colony's side. Her hand can't help but extend towards it.
"...so you get it too, Ranka. Or rather - I was right in joining this path. There's so much one-sided love waiting to go somewhere, and when it converges all in one place, it's just like nuclear fusion. An idol has to be a star, vast and radiant. ...You're not just a girl who's living a little fleeting dream. You're serious about what this all entails. The world-changing burden of being an idol. Hehehe...Competition."
...she's reading way too much into that line.
<Pose Tracker> Emilia Eschonbach has posed.
Alouette's enthusiastic bonjour maybe catches Emmy a little offguard, but she smiles nonetheless. "H-Hi, Alouette." She responds, in the gap between songs. She can't help but feel the knight look fitted Alouette pretty well.
Emilia nods in agreement with Shinji. "Ranka's... o-one of the n-nicest people I've e-ever met. I w-w-wouldn't have found out... how much I l-loved music if it w-wasn't for her and Sheryl." She finds herself agreeing with Kaworu as well. "Yeah... I c-c-can't think of a-anyone who d-deserves this as m-m-much as R-Ranka does. I'm r-really glad she could make her d-dream come true."
Emilia is notably not on a date tonight- that's gotten harder and harder as Milly's work has picked up, and Emilia's been juggling her own work, school and... other activities. Love is a dogfight, huh... Emilia could understand that. Still, she thought Ranka hated fighting, the military aesthetic's a little jarring.
But only a little, because before long Emilia is waving her glowstick in time with the beat. Even if the lyrics don't quite match how she sees Ranka's image... it's really easy for her to get into the groove, getting a little into dancing along in her seat.
<Pose Tracker> Gridman has posed.
Gridman's faerie outfit fades, and he makes a soft sound of disappointment as it goes. Oh well. As Ranka speaks to the crowd, he cheers loudly. Writing a song sounds tough -- the only person Gridman knows who can do that is Kaworu, and Kaworu can do practically everything.
Shinji gently turns Gridman down, and though the Hyper Agent can't quite make out his words, the message is clear. Gridman offers a thumbs-up in response. Hopefully that'll be clear, too! They can all meet up afterwards. Half the fun of a concert is the buzz you get when it ends!
"I'm glad." He says to Akane, at her reassurance. "You make a pretty great magical girl, by the way!" This is, of course, something Gridman has experience in. Leina gave him the Magical Girl crash course a year ago.
Gridman isn't on a date, despite Kaworu's presence -- but he does have his eye on someone special, right? His partners are certainly special. Waving his glowstick with that same concussive enthusiasm, he cheers happily.
(Vit at the mention of Variable Fighters, actually puts his phone down. This is an occasion worthy of mention -- has the world ever seen Sky Vitter's hands unoccupied by his phone before?)
Another costume change for Ranka, met with cheers and applause from the audience, and the song begins! Gridman bobs along with the beat, appreciating the quick lyrics. Part of him wants to dance, but there's not much room for his usual flashy acrobatic style. Better just to watch for now.
(Vit's eyes take on a certain sheen of wonder at the holographic variable fighters, an unironic grin spreading. We won't mention how many models of variable fighters rest in what should be his kitchen, back home.)
Gridman gasps audibly at 'black out!', but realizes everything is fine as the audience applauds. He joins them, laughing. "That scared me a little! I guess someone in trouble wouldn't say the words 'black out', though."
"This is amazing so far." Gridman beams up at the stage, waiting for the lights to return. "I can't wait to see what comes next."
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
"You looked like a real princess," She points out to Emmy, in turn. Honestly... the whole fairy tale hologram idea Ranka had was a huge hit. "Hopefully you're enjoying the show so far... I know I definitely am~"
She too, notices how Asciel challenges the Brave Police... well, she wants to hope it's okay in their hands... because Alouette is just here to enjoy a show for today. And she trusts Asciel will behave, or it'll reflect very poorly on her, after all.
As for the next song... Love is a Dogfight, huh? She's not here on a date, although she ought to drag Sho to one of these so far... but their relationship did start through friendly competition, so she totally understands the vibe. And if she lets loose a little, she can appreciate the rather silly lyrics. It's all really good fun. It looks like Rikka's having a rather lot of fun with it too... with Akane fully indulging that.
She's pleased to be complimented by Akane, too. "Thank you! Medieval-wear can be really fascinating, even if it tends to be a little extra." she agrees. "You looked absolutely magical by the way~" She shoots a compliment right back. "And Rikka's tuxedo? Oh my gosh..." If that isn't an open invitation to let Akane gush about her girlfriend...
"For sure!" Alouette agrees with Gridman. "This is definitely going to be a night I never forget."
<Pose Tracker> Ranka Lee has posed.
Time is given for the applause, before the spotlight shines on stage, and Ranka does a quick step into it in her variable fighter garb. "How was that? Another new one from me to all of you! I guess while planning this concert I just got a little overexcited."
Ranka gives the audience a toothy smile, before her smile becomes more subdued. "Love has more than just an exciting heart pounding side to it doesn't it? Feelings are just complicated like that."
Taking a step towards the audience, there's an almost wistful look in her expression, "So many different sides... and so next I'd like to share with all of you my version of an old classic by Lynn Minmay."
BGM Change - Angel's Paints - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izYKne76blk
Instead of the lights going off Ranka turns around and, the beat simply starts, it's more energetic at the start than Ranka's current vibe would imply, even as something shimmers around Ranka as her hip moves to the beat. Within moments she's turning around, wearing a white and violet dress, long white gloves, and a white hat adorned with a violet flower and ribbons.
https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/macross/images/6/61/RankaUta16.png/revision/latest?cb=20200817125903
As she starts to sing, there's a contrast between the instrumentals, the lyrics, and her sweet voice that resonates across the amphitheater. A wider view of the stage is given, as Ranka leans against a window frame, the white curtains streaming against a vision of a watercolor sky at dusk. Stepping away, she moves to an easel, a wistful look like she's ruminating what to paint, a hand over her heart.
"When I look at the sky
"I breathe in the shining gentle winds
"Reflecting the twilight down by the window
"Sad events stained even my heart blue."
Then seemingly deciding upon it, she picks up a brush, and puts it to the easel.
"I'll repaint it with angel's paint
"Any way I want."
The audience's perspective changes, as if it were a trip through a watercolor heart. Blurs of paint change how the heart is viewed at any given moment as if to simply imply the complicated depths of it, only to give a wider view, showing its as vast as the sky itself.
"When we met I longed only for the sky
"Without noticing
"The love that always protected me."
And there Ranka is, on a wind swept hill of green, her eyes upon the sky, dress fluttering in the breeze. A hand moves to her hat as if to keep it from flying off, as she extends a hand towards the sky only to see a feather floating down towards her. The moment it touches her glove the sky itself changes to a Colony viewport of reinforced glass, her fingertips sliding across it, as she watches distant stars move further and further away from her.
"When I say goodbye to you for just a while
"I love you
"Will these feelings change to tears, I wonder?"
One last movement of her fingertips across the glass, before she turns away, her movements subdued, almost contemplative in their yearning as she moves away from the viewport. Yet even as she does, a light shines, and she stops, turning around to-
"If I avert my eyes everything will go far away
"Someday, an eternal light will beckon me."
-be looking at the sky again through a window. As if to suggest it were all a daydream, a hope, a small wish, a desire. The girl seems to sigh, a hand over her heart as she steps away from the window-
"Sad events stained even my heart blue
"I'll repaint it with angel's paint
"Any way I want."
-but offers it one final glance, as if her hope still remained, despite the sadness. The music winds down, leaving her all alone save perhaps, for a single feather, that flutters down and strikes the floor behind her becoming the focus of the spotlight, as she walks away into the dark.
<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.
Akane giggles, and that gets a giggle back out of Rikka and a brief pleased look at her agreement. Akane assures Gridman that she's good, and Rikka relaxes, just a little.
The song plays through - and Rikka chuckles at Akane's teasing.
"I certainly wouldn't say no~." Rikka shoots back. She nods, though, when Akane compliments Alouette's costume.
"Yeah, the knight look really fits you." Rikka agrees, before looking toward Gridman. "And you! That look was incredible on you. And those wings - they seemed really natural."
The next song begins. A classic, by Lynn Minmay. As a music fan, and especially one who's looked into those who's footsteps Sheryl followed in(thanks, Kaworu), she's heard this one before. But as always, a different singer is going to give the song a different energy.
And Ranka's, too, is incredible. Rikka is hooked. She always tends toward the strongly emotional songs, and this one doesn't disappoint - the song ends, Ranka walks away into the dark, and Rikka finds herself wiping away tears.
"Wow... She really did that one justice." Rikka murmurs.
Listening to it now, surrounded by friends... coming here was a great idea.
<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.
I wouldn't have found out how much I loved music if it wasn't for her and Sheryl... Shinji looks up from Emilia to Ranka on the stage. He doesn't have an experience like that--he already liked music, though sometimes it might be more accurate to say that music is a refuge for him when the world is too much--but he can easily see Ranka being that for someone, and Sheryl's impressive in her own right.
"That's really nice," he thus replies. "It's kind of amazing how the Macross fleets keep... being how incredible performers like them got their start." Since technically Minmay wasn't 'from' a Macross.
"It was her destiny," Kaworu remarks on Ranka making her dream come true, his gaze steady on his friend on the stage. "She was fated to move the hearts of all who hear her."
Shinji smiles a little. What a Kaworu thing to say. The both of them see and acknowledge Gridman's thumbs-up with a nod, and that settles that, too. They can catch up with him and the others afterwards.
Ranka starts up her next song, and though it's an old classic, the spin she puts on it really makes it her own. It has an energy, a bounce to it, that distinguishes it from the original cover. Shinji doesn't know if he likes it better than Minmay's version, but he does like it. (It's a different kind of 'angel,' after all.)
Kaworu hums along just a bit, admiring the imagery of paint, the fall of a feather, the sky through viewports and windows. Yes... Ranka has done well in making this sound, the sound of the original Legendary Songstress (you're welcome, Rikka), her own.
<Pose Tracker> BP-110 Deckerd has posed.
"You have us now, now what do you want? Is it to ask another question?"
Deckerd doesn't seem to be entertaining Asciel's big sister delusion right now, his brow furrowed as he keeps an eye on her avatar. It's not just that she's a criminal, he just fundamentally disagrees with her on an argument they had all that time ago. Yuta's his strength, not a weakness, and not a burden. If it wasn't for him, he wouldn't be who he was.
Is he petty for holding a grudge on a spat that long ago? Probably. Possibly. He also feels like considering that she was pointing weapons at a bunch of people, including himself, while arguing this and endangering lives, that he's pretty justified. Actually, he's being pretty adult about this in general. Definitely. Ok, no, he's lying to himself, but much like Yuta, he's a bit too stubborn to let off the gas now.
Yuta, meanwhile, while still somewhat on guard, doesn't seem nearly as standoffish. If she wanted to cause trouble, she would have done so a long time ago, as far as he's concerned. He'll still have to file a report that she was here when this is all over, but in the meantime... Well, he IS off duty, and he's also just a kid! It's fiiiiine. For now, he'll just continue filming and listening to the music.
<Pose Tracker> Christina MacKenzie has posed.
Chris gives it one more twirl as the aetherial magic comes to an end. The music fades, and with it, her fae garb, and there's a slight pang as the sparkles of her wings fade. More than anything else, it's a bewildering feeling, being swept up into Ranka's energy and gently set back down.
"She's powerful, I don't think anyone can argue that..." Chris murmurs to herself, taking one last look at each of her friends in the vicinity as their own transformations end--ah. Her eyes meet someone's. "Hey, Kaworu, enjoying yourself?" She doesn't say it very loud, but there's always the uncanny sense that he might hear it anyway. Not that she could hear a response, if he gave one.
"Oh, that's right, Nat, you grew up on-base. I guess music really is what soldiers can share with civilians, isn't it? I'm glad you're here--you seem like you need a break from being a soldier."
"I seem...settled?" Chris considers herself. Thinks back to the last time she saw Ranka, when Azure Ether completely swept her off her feet...those memories of Sayla and Bernie... "You really think so? Ah, things have... I fixed my Gundam, broke my Gundam, went a little crazy, but things worked out somehow. Well, when things go worse than you ever feared they could...but somehow, everything is still alright? Well, I could say I'm learning how to hope." She chuckles a little, now considering the more literal meaning of settled. "I'm also learning how to stay in one place, since there's someone I need to be close to. So I'll make sure Sayla knows what you said, Nat. You let me know if you need help in turn, okay?"
The next songs... One about a date... Gosh! No, there's no one like that for her right now, she barely has room for her salvage trade these days with all the furor, much less time and space for courtship, sheesh...
"Well," she murmurs out loud when Love is a Dogfight ends, "I do have someone I'm keeping my eye on, I suppose? Not like that, though..." She wondered if she would be allowed to buy two LE singles after the concert, or if the stock was low... if she could, she wouldn't mind trying to get a signature on the gift one!
While she's skipping ahead in her mind, Chris gets taken by surprise, as Ranka jumps into a classic from her Zenties childhood, a song she sang as a girl for its rhythm, not yet really thinking of heartbreak or yearning. Hearing it in a fresh, new voice, it makes a fresh impression on her heart, contrasting the enthusiastic beat with an emotional resiliency... and a ceaseless momentum forward.
When she turns to look back at Natarle, there's tears in her eyes, but she's smiling despite them.
"Ah, damn it... She got me again."
<Pose Tracker> Garrod Ran has posed.
Garrod tilts his head a bit as Ranka introduces her next song. Not one of her own, but a classic by another singer? A corner of his brain wonders how far back this goes ... but once the music starts, and Ranka begins singing this 'classic,' Garrod gets swept up in listening again. Still peppy, very much an idol's song, but more focused somehow - gathering that energy in rather than spreading it around, maybe?
He may not be waving his light as energetically as before, but he gets back into the rhythm, following the beat with his neighbors. The holographic show that Ranka blends her performance into draws him in further ... at least mostly. Part of him is still thinking about the girl he wanted to be at this concert with.
They'll manage it someday, he's sure - and in a way, this song gives him even more hope for that future than the previous songs have done.
<Pose Tracker> Emilia Eschonbach has posed.
The Princess comment gets a bright pink blush out of Emmy. "Th-thanks." A real princess, huh? "You r-really think so?" She can't help but wonder if she'd dress like this in another life...
But there's only one person here who knows that secret part of her life, and she's up on that stage, singing her heart out.
"It's kind of i-i-incredible," Emmy says in reply to Shinji. "I w-w-wonder what it is. About the fleets..." Emmy has a lot of romanticism wrapped up with the idea of life in space. The idea that the Macross Fleets would be a more free life, one that alows for this sort of music.
Though she knows that's not universal too.
Destined for this, huh? "M-Maybe... b-but she worked hard to g-get here, too." The idea that someone's where they are just because of fate... For some reason that doesn't land for Emmy.
The song is so upbeat, but the song is so... Emmy let's out a little sad sigh despite herself. Is it really okay to paint over your sad memories?
...Then again, maybe it's better that Ranka can forget...
<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.
Akane giggles a little at the idea that she looked magical. "I do make a pretty good witch, hehe..." she agrees with Gridman and Alouette, though she doesn't have long to dwell on it as the next musical number starts.
Covers are a fascinating part of a musical performance; Akane's surprised by how much this one hits her. She would've written it off as, well, zentie music, before now -- but this hits. ... is she a Ranka fan? Ranka is a casual friend, sure, so maybe that makes it weird, but --
Okay, yep, she thinks, as the music trails off: she's into this. "I'm not sure I've ever heard the original..." Akane admits to Rikka, at the mention of doing that one justice. "But this was nice for sure." ... She is starting to approach her People Limit for the day, admittedly, but... well, there are worse ways to spend that.
<Pose Tracker> Asciel Colette has posed.
"Don't be ridiculous, Deckerd!~ Asking you a question of all things, when you're the one with so much to learn, and my whole purpose in this world is to answer questions." Asciel draws her leg up along the top of the Rankamobile - for someone who talked so big a game about not needing other humans, isn't she...adapting pretty well to their body language? "I wanted you to come here for a confluence of two very easy reasons.~"
"First, I wanted to hear and observe you more closely when Ranka began to sing. I wanted to know if the power of music - the harmony of the spheres - held as much of an effect on you as it did me. The moment I began paying attention to song, that's the moment I realized that it synchronized with the truths of the world - that a song is more true than simple words."
"Second, and this is most important so you should listen up.~"
"I wanted you in a position where it'd be harder for you to pursue me~ After all, we're surrounded by crowds you have to tip-toe through!" Grinning ear to ear for her viewers at home, Asciel spins her camera around to the many clusters and gatherings of people in every direction. "You did well elegantly weaving through when you weren't on short notice, but I have my doubts you'll keep up with me when I make my exit.~" A little wink and a lowering of her glasses later, and Asciel follows with:
"Oh, and a third bonus. I got you to listen to me. That's a good sign. I've started to get a liiiiittle fed up with approaching even the likes of you as equals, when you haven't seen the same light I have. So I'll coordinate first, just like an idol performance! Just like with Ranka here! She sings her tune and lays out the rules, so that when she gestures to the audience, rather than explaining what she wants them to do - they know what to do by her guidance!"
Asciel sweeps her hand outwards towards Ranka's stage - and has only just soaked in the melancholy of her song. Now that she's gotten so into it, so fired up - the wistful yearning hits so much differently. That over-confident, over-zealous expression on her face drops - and she can't help but hold onto her own upper body, fingers clenching into the top hem of her shirt.
>...I still haven't solved it.
>...what am I going to do when I become like the sky, like I [promised]?
>You really wouldn't be able to stay at my side.
>...and...one day...the lapsing miracle that connected us...
>...even still, you and I are too different, and eventually, you-
_CRASH AVERSION: push_comment:"Asciel, don't stare into that abyss. If you're going to rebuild others' emotions in you, make sure they're the ones that have happened. Not the ones that one day maybe will."
<Pose Tracker> Gridman has posed.
"Thanks, Rikka!" Gridman says, far more confidently than he would have a year ago, then laughs in a self-depricating sort of way. "I wouldn't mind having wings like that. It'd be a lot easier to reach things." Ranka asks how her song was, and Gridman cheers in appreciation. Feelings are definitely complicated. As the next song is introduced, Gridman hugs his teddy bear, smiling as the music rises again.
As Ranka sings... Gridman's eyes get a little misty. He's never tried painting out, not really, but the wistful feeling of looking in from the outside is something he can relate to more and more lately. Saying goodbye...
Heart glowstick lowering, Gridman hides his face in the teddy bear until the song ends.
"Y--yeah." Gridman replies to Rikka. "Ranka really made it her own."
("Mm." Vit murmurs, tapping again on his phone.)
<Pose Tracker> Alouette Pommier has posed.
There's a grin when Rikka chimes in on complimenting her knight fit, and she also nods in agreement when it's Gridman's turn to be praised. She really liked the wings, too. "You almost looked like you could just... take off and soar. Even though we're in space." She laughs, slightly.
Her own compliment gets a blush out of Emmy... Alouette's completely oblivious to her secret life. "Of course!" She insists, about the authenticity of it, all the same. "As long as you own it... you can make any look you want truly yours." That's what she loves so much about fashion, after all.
Ranka's next song... even Alouette knows of Lynn Minmay's influence, and the way she inspired countless idols on their journey through music, including Sheryl. So like Rikka, she greatly respects her -- and looks forward to seeing Ranka's take.
A melancholy feeling washes over her as she listens to the bittersweet lyrics, as Ranka gazes to the distant sky. The emotions surrounding repainting heartbreak into anything you want are intimately familiar ones... and the sound itself brings a feeling of nostalgia for a time that she never had. Yet, she's brought to the present by Ranka's ever-unique voice - painting it with her own heart, just as so many artists have.
Alouette isn't much of a crier most of the time... but she's left feeling just as emotional when Ranka steps away into the darkness. "Seriously..." She agrees, about doing it justice. "And.. I'm glad we all got to hear it together." Even if they all came here separately, friends always seem to find each other. "When it wouldn't be crowding her, we definitely have to let Ranka how incredible she was tonight."
<Pose Tracker> BP-110 Deckerd has posed.
"You say that but... I'm unarmed and off duty, if you had kept quiet, we never would have even noticed you were here. If anything, you've made us aware of a place we could potentially find you in the future."
He's not holding anything, but from his tone, it really feels like Deckerd is writing and reading off of a clipboard. Yuta, meanwhile, remains silent, intent on listening.
"I won't, however. As far as my records are concerned, you were never here."
Deckerd remains silent for a bit to listen to the last song for a bit, while Yuta clearly wants to object to Deckerd's decision, but he also really doesn't want to butt in. From what Deckerd's described of her, she doesn't seem to be his biggest fan.
"The music is nice, but... Well, I suppose it does not 'resonate' with me. I'm not a musician, let alone an idol, but from what I understand and what I've been told, a song only truly touches you when there's something you can relate to... Speaking of relations... We're not. Our learning models are completely different. You're not Power Joe, you're not Dumpson, and you're certainly not McCrane. I think it'd be healthier for both of us if we didn't view each other as siblings for superficial reasons."
<Pose Tracker> Ranka Lee has posed.
As the spotlight hones in on Ranka again, the applause starts to die down, and Ranka gives this small laugh, "Do you think I did it justice? I'm definitely not on her level yet, but I'd like to think that one day I can get there!" A small cant of her head, and a smile. Sometimes a touch of insecurity can be charming when the brand you're trying to sell is cute, and it comes naturally to her, so her manager told her to give it a try.
What comes next are songs her fans know well. A soulful rendition of Azure Ether, which she dedicates once again to a mysterious song writer and supporter. There's already a lot of speculation on her fan club who this mystery song writer is. And then for the finale, Interstellar Flight to amp up the energy right before she leaves the stage.
She returns to the stage coming off the sweeping high of Interstellar Flight, before she speaks to them all, "Thank you all for coming out tonight Side 1, and to all of my fans that came all this way! I also wanted to announce that my second single goes on sale right..."
A pause as if she were waiting for the exact second, "...now! Everyone here tonight will get the chance to purchase a limited edition version with an expanded list of tracks as my gift to the people of Side 1!"
And shortly after at the merch booths, the limited edition does goes on sale, the single is titled 'Rainbow Bear Bear' appropriately, with the following expanded track list for the limited edition:
01. Rainbow Bear Bear [Niji-iro Kuma Kuma]
02. Azure Ether [Ao no Ether]
03. Angel Paints [Tenshi no Enogu, Ranka version.]
04. Lion [Ranka version.]
05. Rainbow Bear Bear (w/o Ranka, i.e. karaoke version)
06. Azure Ether (w/o Ranka, i.e. karaoke version)
True to her word, those that bought the first limited edition at her debut concert don't need to be at the concert to purchase the limited edition, but those that have it and are here get a second copy of her second single free bypassing the usual one copy per person restriction, as well as a code for a digital version.
There's also a mysterious counter that's credited to each person who does which is currently at 2 of 3 - and a code for her next release. Apparently those who manage to get the third might receive some extra special coming up.
"Please continue to support me going forward-! Until I see you all again-" She does the KIRA pose, toothy mouth gleaming as she annnounces, "-SPARKLE!"
Taking a bow, she stays out extra long to the applause, before moving backstage...
... and unceremoniously collapsing on the couch Elmo set up for her, panting as she puts her legs up. Elmo placing a warm towel over her forehead, "How did you think I did?"
"Fantastic-! The energy out there - why I haven't seen anything like it since-" His phone suddenly rings, and as he checks the name on it, he double takes. "Um- yeah I have to take this. Ranka you mind if I step away for a moment?" Ranka gives him a concerned look, "Is it- something I should be worried about?" Elmo waves a hand at her, "No no-! Not at all-! Just you know, some big shot from Nergal. Field this kind of thing all the time!"
Elmo steps away, "Hello? Yeah- Yeah- it's-" He clears his throat nervously, "Yes Sir! But I assure you that the new market will more than make up for our loss of-" She kept watching as he steps away, this sense of foreboding just... growing.