HANDSHAKE EVENT: FANSERVICE START

[idolpro]

Who: Unfamiliar faces?
Where: Tokyo-F
When: Day 424, morning

[ The cryptic countdown pauses: 999999.

Then, the video feed turns on. Who's this—why, it's Man☆Eater! ]

A big ol' congrats to our final winner, who requested: "PLEASE MAKE C KING OF HEAVEN"! Now, we could make that happen for you, but where'd be the fun in that? And hey, we've got a special occasion to celebrate: the start of our fourth season! If the third time's a charm, the fourth's gotta be even better, right? Gyahaha!

They say you should meet your heroes... eh, or wait, was it the opposite? Oh well, too late! 'Cause guess what, you lucky rascal? Instead of sitting back and watching all the action through a screen, you're getting the once-in-a-lifetime chance to meet the man himself! No accounting for taste if you ask your host here, but hey, go bask in his divine presence or whatever! Gyahahahaha!

[ the video shuts off before further explanation can be given, though fortunately you're receiving a text message: ]

IMEEJI'S FIRST HANDSHAKE EVENT BEGINS
FULFILL FAN REQUESTS TO BECOME MORE POPULAR ♥

[ And the ground begins to shift . . . there's a rumbling sound—an earthquake?

—no. Those are the sounds of footsteps . . . thousands of them, all at once.

Wherever idols are, they'll be able to see the streets and buildings are being invaded. Not by imps, not by demons, but rather, monochromatic people—sometimes just silhouettes, shadowy facsimiles of people rather than people themselves. Though they look lifeless, the energy they bring with them is overwhelming. Suddenly, the empty once-plastic city feels like it has the population to justify its size, and every building, communally upgraded or not, now accommodates the visitors, with non-upgraded buildings revamped inside to be bare-bones sleeping quarters for the . . . just how many people are here, anyway?

Perhaps more intimidating than the abrupt number of the Damned in Tokyo-F is the fact that they're all wearing. . . idol merchandise. Jackets with idol faces on them. Headbands. Lightsticks.

And. . . wherever you are, they're there. To get your signature. To shake your hand. Maybe to ask you to do something.

Idols will have to deal with this for . . . some time. The cryptic countdown has started again, but this time it's ticking reliably, though slowly, down.

Incidentally: far from the hotel, tall white walls have been erected around Honmachi Sakura Park. They're not magical walls, though—it seems determined idols can use any number of methods to climb over the walls to get to Heaven. It looks like it's largely there to keep fans away. . . ]

SIGN-UPS | REQUESTS | TURN-IN @ SUNDAY, DECEMBER 12

Comments

[crossmyheartandhope]

...mine?

[at_heart]

[ oh Hurry ]

Yeah. Apples, kiwis, what's your fave?

[crossmyheartandhope]

Oh. Uh.

Bananas are pretty good? Cherries, too. And blueberries.

[at_heart]

[ Thinking. ]

I can do the cherries and blueberries right now. Bananas, I'd have to plant something.

[crossmyheartandhope]

The probly got bananas at the store.

[at_heart]

They do, but I'm supposed to grow this.

[ Wink. ]

[crossmyheartandhope]

Oh! I mean, cherries and blueberries are plenty.

[at_heart]

[ Snort. ]

That just makes me want to get you bananas all the more, you know. If the garden weren't already kind of crowded...

[ If they get that orchard, man. ]

[crossmyheartandhope]

Don't bananas need like... tropical temperatures, though? Seems hard to keep em in a garden.

[at_heart]

I'm sure it would be, but. [ Heh. Lupine gives Hurry a crooked grin. ] We're cheaters that way.

[crossmyheartandhope]

What, all powers all the time?

[at_heart]

[ Snorts softly. ]

I'm not saying it'd keep. [ Nor is he saying it wouldn't, he's not completely sure how time works in all their gardens. It seems to pass normally enough in the main one but it's always warm and temperate there??? ] I'm just saying we could grow anything long enough to get fruit off it.

[crossmyheartandhope]

...huh. That's pretty fancy, dude.

[at_heart]

[ Chuckles. ]

No one's shown you, huh? Yeah, it's called Rapunzel for some reason. We can do the nymph-thing all the time.

[crossmyheartandhope]

I'm kinda jealous.

[at_heart]

Yeah? I like your magic weapons.

[crossmyheartandhope]

I mean... I ain't gonna lie, it's nice having em handy.

[at_heart]

[ He especially likes the part where it's impossible to hurt people you care about with them. ]

Yep, the rest of us have to scrape by with whatever we can grab. [ Wink. ] [ He does have his sword with him today, though. ] So, cherries and blueberries for now, bananas might be a raincheck. Wanna go see our garden?

[ and get out of this... fans, ]

[crossmyheartandhope]

I mean... if that's cool?

[at_heart]

It's cool with me. [ A glance around at the crowd. ] Might have to wait to actually give it to you until we're back topside, though.

[ Wouldn't want this not to count because it was away from the cameras! ]

[crossmyheartandhope]

Oh yeah. Probly ain't a bad call, huh.

[at_heart]

Wanna make sure it all counts. [ Winks. ] The bananas'll just be for you.

[ Not far from the hotel, so they can probably just walk... unless Hurry would wanna fly, of course. ]

[crossmyheartandhope]

[If they're close, it's probably easier to walk, thugh by the time they get there, they've been stopped to shake a few hands, give a few hugs, and pose for a few pictures]

[Hurricane looks a little frazzled by the time they get in the lobby doors]

Man, they're real enthusiastic, huh.

[at_heart]

[ Chuckles. ]

I guess so. [ Hits the elevator call button lightly with his fist. ] Suppose we should've figured, all that mail had to come from somewhere.

[ And he's all for paranoia, but it never once crossed his mind that the fandom might not be 'real' in at least some sense of the word. ]

[crossmyheartandhope]

Yeah... the show's pretty popular in hell proper.

[Leaning against the wall to wait for the elevator]