Track 01 - BathRoom

WARNINGS: -none-

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When Ruki lifted his head up from bowing, not only was he surprised to see the fans copying him but when he glanced around at his band mates, they all had their heads bowed too. Ruki just stood and stared at them for a moment. Aoi and Uruha both had their hands resting on their knees, Reita had his hands on his hips and Kai was resting his drumsticks in his lap while they all head their heads lowered. Just as Ruki was looking out over the audience again, they were all beginning to stand up straight again. They started applauding the last performance; no cheering, just clapping. Okay he was surprised the fans bowed along with him but he hadn't expected the other guys too as well. He gave an embarrassed smile and scratched the base of his head sheepishly - fans knew when he was embarrassed because he'd start playing with his hair.

The girls were all smiling up at the band and clapping. Some fans laughed when Ruki seemed to laugh and hunch down behind his platform to hide from them. He began biting his nails, still with a little smile on his face. Kai rolled his eyes and stood up with his microphone-arm in one hand.

"Well it seems our esteemed lead singer has become lost for words ... so I will speak for him", Kai said, pointing at Ruki with his drumsticks, who wrapped his arms around his head while still in the squatting position, "We're really proud of the song 'Saraba' ... no likes to read or hear or even see the results of War ... Ruki paid his respects to those who fight for our freedom, and in return you have all done the same. In other words, Ruki is very moved by what you've done and he thanks you. Now what do you say we get him up off the ground to sing another song?"

The audience cheered and whistled as they chanted for Ruki to stand up. He laughed again and stood-up straight. He made face at Kai, who smiled brightly and rattled his drumsticks over his drum kit before tapping away at the symbols to begin the opening to 'Anti Pop' ...

~*~

Choushi ii koto bakka narabete hozaite
Stage tacha kaai kobutte kobiutte
Share daka nani naka shiranee keredo kakkowarize
O-ie ni kaette mammy no mune demo mondoke
And it does not come out!
Taikutsu datta kinou ni tsuba tsuite
Kisei ni shitagau pop ni nakayubi tatete
Yaritai you ni yarusa mawai wa kenkei neeze
Buchi kowasouze in my way!!

Let's go it is our turn
Stand up! rise your fist!
Let's go it is our turn
Destructive music yeah

Let's go it is our turn
Stand up! rise your fist!
Let's go it is our turn
Destructive music yeah

-Ruki's rap session-

Let's go it is our turn
Stand up! rise your fist!
Let's go it is our turn
Destructive music yeah

Let's go it is our turn
Stand up! rise your fist!
Let's go it is our turn
Destructive music yeah

Let's go it is our turn
Stand up! rise your fist!
Let's go it is our turn
Destructive music yeah

Let's go it is our turn
Stand up! rise your fist!
Let's go it is our turn
Destructive music yeah

~*~

Never before had the girls jumped so much during a song. Pretty much from the moment Ruki started singing, they were jumping around swinging their arms back and forth. If their arms weren't swaying, the hands were clapping. Mika had long since taken her large white hoodie off because she was really starting to feel the heat. The other girls were fine because their outfits were quite light and didn't completely cover their arms. After the first two sets of 'Let's go it is our turn', Ruki broke into shouting a whole lot of practically in-audible rubbish into his mic that you couldn't understand even if there were lyrics for it. But after that there was a long break in-between singing that Kai, Reita, Aoi and Uruha really jammed on their instruments. Aoi, Reita and Uruha all jumped out onto the extended platform and played to the fans. Ruki stayed standing on his platform while Kai bashed away on his drums. There may not be a lot of lyrics for 'Anti Pop' but the 'Destructive Music' and Ruki's vocals were enough said. There was no room for pop music in their world. After Aoi, Reita and Uruha were done showing off they all retreated back to their places to fade the music out - the stage blacked-out again.

* * *
After the stage blacked-out, the girls all made really loud 'awww'ing sounds. They had just heard a really cool song and now they could see their favourite band getting ready for the next song. Ah well, they could just look forward to another dramatic entrance - here's hoping Ruki didn't get lost for words again like Kai had pointed out before 'Anti Pop'. They'd never seen him do that before which was really surprising and funny at the same time. Whatever it was Ruki seemed to get over it pretty quickly. While the audience was fidgeting and calling out to their favourite band member, the girls turned around to talk to their concert acquaintances.

"Hey how many live gigs have you been too? This is obviously not your first, if your that good at making cosplay outfits", Kikyo said to the cosplay girl, "All five of us, my friends and I, we were at the Nameless Liberty Final but we weren't this close ... in fact way back before the middle of the floor".

"My friend and I have gone to a few live gigs, yeah. I got to see them in Sapporo during their Nameless Liberty Tour because I was visiting my cousin", the cosplay girl explained, as she looked thoughtfully up at the stage, "Unfortunately I missed out on seeing it with my friend but my cousin went with me. It was so cold waiting outside, but Kai apologised for us having to wait in the snow".

"I wish I could have seen the Sapporo live but at least we both got to see the Final at Budoukan. We were actually up on the balconies to the left a little", the Lolita-girl said as she pointed up at the back wall of the Yoshiatsu hall where the balconies would have been if it was Budoukan, "So we got quiet a good view of the stage back sadly we were too far away to see their faces".

Lolita-girl made a fake pout and pretended to cry, as her cosplay friend laughed and patted her back. Ai, Megumi and Kira laughed while Mika 'aww'ed and also pat the girls shoulder. And she thought they had had average seats? These two girls were all the way up on the balcony where you need a telescope to see the stage ... almost. Anyway they perked up when the audience began to stir. The stage had lit up again and Aoi was again standing with his arms wrapped around his acoustic guitar - slow song again~! Ruki was gripping the microphone with both hands on its stand again as he looked up and then bowed his head again. Kai started off the opening of 'Hanakotoba' and Aoi followed soon after.

~*~

Hikarabite fumi tsubusareru no nara semete anata ni
kirei na hana no tonari demo ii soba ni itai desu
sachi usuku tanmei kawaru koto nado nai
itoshiku tada itoshiku anata wo...

Anata wa itsumo toori sugaru tabi ni yasashiku nadete kureta
ame no nai hi wa mizu wo kureta tsuyoku ikiru you ni to
anata wa itsushika sugata wo keshi watashi wa mata ichirin munashiku saku

Kareru tada no hana ni kureru mizu nadonai
kusaru dake no hana ni sosogu hikari nadonai
tada shiki ni obie nagara yami no naka haizuri mawaru
ima hikari wo sagashi nagara yami no naka haizuri mawaru

Dareka watashi ni doujou suru no nara totemo kirei na hana wo sakasete
dare ni demo ai sareru you na sonzai ni naritai

Kareru minikuki hana ni kureru mizu nadonai
kusaru dake no hana wa tsubomi sura nokosezu
me no mae wa yami ni fusagare mogaku watashi wo tsubusu
anata nara anata dattara
kokokara tasukete kureru to omotteita
soumatou no naka de naiteta
anata ga kureta kanshoku wa
toku ga unda yume na no ka
wakeranu ga mama jiki ni kusaru

~*~

After the solemness of 'Saraba' and the hype of 'Anti Pop', 'Hanakotoba' was a soft break in the music that the fans could just stand and listen too. Ruki kept his hands cupped over the microphone for the first verse of the song, but he then pulled the mic out and stood beside the stand so he could see the audience better. He could actually see a small group in the middle waving their arms slowly from side-to-side. Then he again found himself looking in Mika's direction. He noticed she was softly singing along and leaning with her arms stretched out over the railing. Megumi and Ai had their arms linked while Kira and Kikyo were doing the same. Ai and Kira both had one hand each resting on Mika's back as they sang too. All right ... he was going to go for it.

Ruki walked down the extended stage to the edge near Mika. As he kneeled down to keep singing, Mika snapped out of her daze to look at him wide-eyed. As he began the chorus, he reached up and gestured with one finger for Mika to approach him. Ai and Kira were so excited and shocked at the same time that they practically forced Mika to duck underneath the railing. Mika looked wide-eyed at her friends before turning back to look up at Ruki. He reached out for her hand, which she hesitantly gave to him before swallowing hard. He gently closed his fingers over her small hand and remained kneeling as he kept singing to her. Poor Mika could feel the icy stares from Ruki-fans at her back but she dared not turn around. She had Ruki of the Gazette singing to her ... no way was she going to forget this.

For most of the song Ruki never once let go of Mika's hand. Even leaning down to bring her hand up to rest against his cheek. No offence to him but Mika was actually feeling a tiny bit deaf because his voice was a lot stronger up close - and coupled with the loud-speakers, her ears were getting a real bashing. But as Ruki was finishing off with the last little verse, he slowly let her hand go and stood up to back away. Mika stared at him for a second; her cheeks a little flushed she now realised. Before the song finished Mika quickly ducked back to her place between Ai and Kira. As Aoi and Kai were fading the music out, the lights on the stage slowly dimmed before finally falling to black. Mika felt her shoulder being tapped - it was Lolita-girl.

"Oh my god~! I can't tell you how lucky you are~! Most girls go to so many concerts just DYING for their favourite band member to sing or play to them", she said, obviously not fazed by Mika being sung to instead of her, "I wish I was in your place. But you've probably made every Ruki-fan in this dome jealous. He never sings to a particular person in the audience. In fact that's rare for any singer at all~!"

* * *
Mika was listening to Lolita-girl with a little smile on her face. Maybe she was right - it wasn't often that a singer chose to sing to anyone in particular from the audience. Usually because as soon as they jumped down or even got close to the edge of the stage, they would be pounced on by overly excited fans. Megumi, Ai, Kira and Kikyo all nodded enthusiastically at her when she looked around at her friends. However when she glanced out over the crowd behind her, a few girls here and there were all either giving her 'the look' or whispering to each other out of jealousy. Mika puffed out her cheeks and turned around again - what was their problem, he only sang to her. Finally she just decided to ignore them and enjoy the rest of the concert. Megumi was for probably the seventh or eighth time playing with spiral-curled hair to make sure it still was. Ai was fidgeting because the wedges on her feet were now starting to kill - she made a mental note to not wear them to concerts again. Kira was jumping from one foot to the other and jangling her bracelets around, constantly asking where Reita was. Kikyo however just stood normally with her fingers slipped into her jean pockets and thumbs sticking out. She was busy trying to make her eyes adjust to the black stage so she could see the guys - it wasn't working.

Up on the stage, each of the guys was just taking a moment to cool off in front of the fans. Aoi was leaning on his mic-stand with both arms crossed on the top. Reita was now dabbing a towel over his forehead and even roughly underneath his noseband - however there wasn't much room to get the towel under it. Kai was pulling the back on his sleeveless shirt out so the fan behind him could cool his back down. Of course he was laughing and having a joke about it was one of the staff next to him. Uruha was crouching down in front of his fan with his eyes closed. He couldn't wait to change at the encore - his white vest was almost soaked at the back. Ruki stood propping himself against Kai's platform with a water bottle stuck in his mouth. He sat there for a second before pulling it out and setting it down again. He jumped over to Uruha and managed to find him in the darkness; touched the guitarists shoulder to let him know that he was ready. Uruha stood up and got himself ready seeing he was to start off first - 'Anata no Tame no Kono Inochi'

~*~

"Haru kaze kaoru shigatsu ni utau junrenka..."

Nekura, hikikomori no boku, mukuchi dake ga torie desu.
sabishiku nante nai yo, dakara okamainaku.
akushumi isei kansatsu, tanoshikute tamaranai yo.

Rikai funou kisei basei, kyou mo harikitte ikimasu desu.

Youchi [BUREI] wa akimashita. Saraba jinkou youshou [WAIFU]
dousenara [RIARU] deshou? madogiwa [RENSU] wo nozoku.
nanjikan tatta deshou? risou sonomono no kimi.
Unmei no [HITO] to kizuku kono wa osu sugita...

Naze desu ka? kimi wo shiranai no ni konnani mo mune ga itamu no wa
wakaranai dakedo itoshii kurushii yo, kimi wo miteru no ga.

Namae mo shiranu [RENZU] na ito kimi, koe wa todokazu fureru koto wo nai
kocchi wo muite boku wa kakureru kara, kanashisugiru yo konnani soba ni iru no ni...

Itsuka boku ni kizuku toki ga aru toshitara, kimi wa kitto
kowagaru darou nigedasu darou. Fuan ni kigakuruu.

Naze desu ka? kimi wo shiranai no ni konnani mo mune ga itamu no wa
wakaranai dakedo itoshii kurushii yo, kimi wo miteru no ga.

Hitoriaruki no todokazu no omoi, wakatteru no ni tomaranu ga koi.
kimi ga boku ni kizuku hi wa konai. Wakatte mashita. Akiramete mashita.
Aru hareta asa, itsumo no you ni [RENZU] ni utsuru na mo shiranai kimi.
koe mo kakerenu fureraremo shinai, datte sou desho?

"Subete wa housou da mono..."

"harukaze kaoru shigatsu ni utau junrenka...."

~*~

Now there was one song that hadn't been performed in a long time. The last major event that it was played at would have been the Heisei Banka Live Final, the bands second big concert. A real turning point for the group at that time - and also a big turning point for Ruki's dress-sense. The girls didn't get into the Gazette until after that concert but they had all done their research on it - of course they had all had a laugh in the rapidly changing styles of costume. But it was great to hear 'Anato no Tame' again. During the opening of the song as all of the instruments pitched in, Ruki was surprisingly doing his little dance at the beginning of the video clip. The fans couldn't help but laugh because in his 'Regret' outfit, it looked odd. They were used to his black costume with white shredded lengths of material tied around his elbows and knees. But regardless, he got right into singing it again. To those who listened carefully, his voice had developed so much since that song was written ... he was actually having trouble adjusting it to the music.

Aoi, Reita and Uruha skipped out onto the extended stage again to play for the fans. They spread themselves out evenly across with Reita in the middle and Aoi and Uruha at the corners. Of course by the middle of the song was finally getting the hang of it again. He gave a little smile to himself behind the mic as he jumped up on his platform to point out over the audience. The fans all waved their hands in circular motions during the choruses. Megumi, Ai, Mika, Kira and Kikyo were actually doing their own thing but swaying their hands from side-to-side out in front of themselves. Also singing quite a bit stronger than any other songs they sang along to that night. Lets just say the music was loud enough to hide their singing voices, so why not? As the chorus finished and Ruki was just singing the last two lines, Aoi, Reita and Uruha ran back to their places as the music was ending. Finally with the last spoken line by Ruki, Uruha screeched out the last few chords on his guitar. The stage then dimmed a little.

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NOTES:
1) 'Hanakotoba': It is a kind of love song, which is why he sang to Mika again

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