Chapter 26: The Twins Stopped Thinking
The plan was completely derailed.
Aqua looked at the uninvited Hikaru Hoshino, feeling his head throb with a dull ache.
He had intended to use Director Gotanda today—persuading him to use "location scouting" as a pretext to sniff around the Metropolitan Police Department for details on Ryosuke. From there, he hoped to follow the vine to find the mastermind lurking behind the stalker. But the operation was still in its "conception" phase when it suffered a sudden miscarriage.
This man—his biological "father" by title—had been staying out of his way lately. What on earth possessed him to suddenly barge in here?
Aqua found it impossible to understand the inner workings of Hikaru's mind.
Meanwhile, the actual "mastermind" in question—Hikaru Hoshino—was currently in the study, discussing Aqua's future with Director Gotanda.
"He's destined to be an actor; surely you know that, Director? Dragging him down the path of post-production now... isn't that just stalling his future? In a sense, I feel like it's no different from child abduction."
Hikaru's reasoning was actually quite simple. Aqua was a character he had liked in his past life (though not as much as Ai), so naturally, he wanted the boy to have the best possible development.
It wasn't that he was putting himself in the role of a "father" to exert discipline—in fact, Hikaru found it hard to view Aqua as a mere brat. Because the original manga focused on a sixteen-year-old Aqua, the image of that mature, cold teenager was burned into Hikaru's mind.
Every time he looked at this toddler, he saw the grown-up version. Occasionally, the image of Gorou Amamiya in a white lab coat and glasses would overlap, making the sense of cognitive dissonance even more severe.
Ruby, however, was a different story. If he could choose, Hikaru would love to have a daughter exactly like her.
"He is indeed better suited for acting."
Taishi Gotanda pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and politely asked Hikaru if he smoked. He was somewhat surprised to learn the young man wasn't even 20 yet.
That surprise quickly turned into something more eccentric.
"You're the precocious brat's father, aren't you? You two are practically carved from the same mold. Anyone who sees you both at once would realize the connection instantly."
"Aqua is four, and you say you're not even 20..."
Gotanda put a cigarette in his mouth, lit it, took a massive drag, and immediately began coughing violently.
"A father at fifteen? Even with Japan's declining birthrate, this is a bit much. Or am I just falling behind the times?"
Watching the smoke Gotanda exhaled, Hikaru took a small step back.
"Obsessing over someone else's family gossip right to their face... that isn't a very good habit."
Gotanda coughed twice more and slowly straightened his back. "You're right. I overstepped. Likely because I care quite a bit about that brat."
"From the first moment he appeared before me, I saw the 'quality' in him."
"That sense of hetereogeneity—a soul and an exterior that are severely mismatched."
"He has the looks, and he's clearly brilliant. You have to admit, there are some people in this world born with talents others simply don't have. In Aqua, I see the shadow of that talent."
Gotanda glanced toward the living room, where Aqua sat obediently, and a corner of his mouth twitched upward.
"He can survive in this cutthroat industry. More than that, he can win."
"Of course he can," Hikaru agreed. "But as an actor, as a star. Why is he learning directing from you?"
"*Cough, cough.*" Gotanda started coughing again even without the smoke. "Didn't he come to me? I found it hard to refuse."
"Actually, you didn't *want* to refuse," Hikaru pointed out bluntly. "You saw a good sprout and got greedy for a protégé. Honestly, you people..."
Did Japanese people have some sort of obsession with passing on their mantle? Or was the mentor-disciple culture just that prevalent? In this day and age, "personal disciples" were outdated. Intensive crash courses and one-to-many lectures were the rhythm of the modern world!
Hikaru spoke impassively: "I think it's better if I send Aqua to the Lalalai Theatrical Company's experience-based training program."
"Fair enough."
Gotanda crushed his cigarette butt, walked out of the study, and stood before Aqua.
"Regrettably, there's been a change of plans."
"I can no longer train you."
Aqua froze for two whole seconds before he could process the Director's words. He was a smart kid; he could see how much Gotanda valued him, and he knew how to exploit that value.
Precisely because of that, when the rejection came, he found it utterly unbelievable.
"Eh?!"
Aqua stopped thinking.
At the same time, Ruby was receiving personal instruction from Ai.
In a practice room large enough to fit an entire girl group, two figures—one tall, one small—danced gracefully to the music.
Ai's dancing remained flawless. By comparison, Ruby's movements were... lacking. Although Ruby had overcome the lingering fear of dancing from her past life, it didn't magically make her an expert. Unlike in anime, this was objective reality. There was no "breaking through a mental wall" to suddenly gain top-tier skills; steady, grueling effort was the only path to victory.
*One minute on stage, ten years of work off-stage.*
Ai had walked that path herself, so when it came to training Ruby, she showed no mercy.
"That last move lacked power!"
Ai's face still wore a sweet smile, but Ruby felt a strange sense of dread.
Because Ai had been wearing that exact same smile while making her dance for thirty minutes straight without a break. Every tiny error was spotted by Ai's hawk-like eyes, and Ruby was starting to lose her confidence.
"Mama..." Ruby collapsed onto the floor, rubbing her numb legs, her face filled with uncontrollable frustration. "Is Ruby just not suited to be an idol?"
"Huh? Why would you think that?"
Ai sat down on the floor as well, tenderly pulling Ruby into her arms. She gently massaged the muscles in Ruby's legs until the girl began to relax.
"Ruby is very talented! You can do many moves after seeing them just once. You're the most talented idol Mama has ever seen!"
"But I'm nothing like Mama. My movements are full of mistakes."
"Silly child." Ai stroked Ruby's golden hair, smoothing out the stray strands. "Mama has been practicing for many, many years. When I was your age, I wasn't nearly as good as you are."
Ruby burst out laughing. "Mama wasn't an idol at four, so of course you couldn't dance!"
"Exactly. So your starting point is very, very high."
Ai stood up and lifted Ruby high into the air. She seemed to struggle a bit with the weight, but she still managed a bright, radiant smile.
"Mama only knows one child who started practicing dance at four! Ruby will definitely become an even greater idol than Mama!"
"Ruby will work hard!"
Ruby felt like she'd been given a shot of adrenaline. She pumped her fists with a look of determination.
"Then let's practice for two more hours!"
Ai said happily, full of energy. The moment she heard those words, Ruby's entire body went rigid.
"Eh?!" Ruby-chan also stopped thinking.