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Post by Sora Nakai on Mar 10, 2021 13:28:15 GMT -5
Even with a year under her belt here in Fukui, there was still a lot of the area she didn't really know. It wasn't like Koyto, which she knew like the back of her hand, but then again, she didn't have the unfair advantage here that she had back home via her mother's job. In all honesty, it just made it that much more fun when she stumbled across something new and unexpected.
Amaya had seemed even more intense than usual lately, so Sora had decided she clearly needed something different and pulled her out on an adventure like they used to do back home. It might not have been the best idea today, since the sky was clearly threatening to rain at any moment, but it hadn't so much as sprinkled on them thus far. It had been a good break from classes, and they'd even found a couple new stores that Sora would definitely visit in the future.
Sora leaned back in the bench the two were sitting on, taking a quick look up and down the street for anything interesting. "So, where we gonna go next? We haven't been over to the park yet but I think that's a bit of a walk from here." She wondered if the park had a playground - she might be in high school, but there was something still so fun about hopping on the swings. "But we can always do that another day, and stay here for a minute. What did you think of that last place, the one with all the phone charms? I don't know about you but I'm definitely going back to get some of those when I've got more money." She pulled a face, thinking of how low her bank account was sitting at right now. Her parents did give her a regular allowance, but still, it would be a little bit before that next drop.
While listening to Amaya's answer, she found herself glancing around again, before her eyes landed on something that definitely hadn't been here the last time they were. "Oooooh, nevermind the park, I know what we're doing now!" With that, Sora leapt up from the bench and grabbed Amaya's hand to pull her best friend to her feet. "There's a new karaoke place here!" she said, grinning as she pointed it out.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Mar 10, 2021 23:21:12 GMT -5
One would've thought that things would get better after the first year for Amaya. After all she'd had a year to settle in and figure out how life away from home would be like. Yet as a second year she found herself even more withdrawn and empty than the year before had been at Fukui. Every day that she attended class was a supreme trial of her personal fortitude and ability to grit her teeth and work through it. Her classmates gave her either a wide berth or weird looks, or even worse both. Amaya knew how hard Sora seemed to be working to smooth things over even now. At times she wanted to reach out to her friend and let her know that this wasn't necessary, that she wasn't just super focused on cooking. But then the memory of promises to become a professional cook inevitably haunted Amaya's mind and.. she was just gonna leave it at that. Best not to summon the actual spirits that might haunt thoughts - could they? She didn't want to find out.
Thankfully they had days like today to give her a very much needed break from the soul draining tedium of the kitchen. Granted it was just hanging out with Sora and exploring around, but that happened to be one of Amaya's favorite things. No real goal or destination in mind, just wandering about and seeing what was in the neighborhood. Random inspirations could lead to the discovery of a cute little shop or some tasty food in the last place you'd expect it. Today already had been more fun than Amaya had had in weeks, even if the sky was threatening to pour rain on them. By the time that Sora asked her about the last place, Amaya was already more relaxed than she had felt in a while as well; the deadpan face of despair was nowhere to be seen.
"That last place had some charms I hadn't seen before, but.. I mean none of the mascots I was looking for. They were all too famous and stuff," Amaya laughed, a smile even threatening to appear in its wake. She was really in quite rare form. Amaya had some spare cash on her, though she wasn't about to just throw it at any old cute charm. It had to be the right cute charm. Then the magic words were spoken - karaoke.. going to karaoke!
With a hand up, Amaya sprung to her feet and suddenly realized what place Sora was talking about. She had actually scouted the local places out, and this was one of the newest ones. Given that it was new she felt absolutely certain they would have some kind of point card system set up for recurring loyal customers. Maybe even a free drink bar for first time guests. Amaya was really curious to see what it was like indoors and whether it would be worth sneaking out to sing in when no one else was around. For now though she managed to just look like a girl having fun with her friend.
"Yeah, that sounds like fun. If you don't mind, I'd like to sing the first one.. we should do a duet though! Like the theme of that one anime we started watching!" Amaya exclaimed, releasing wave after wave of pent up energy.
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Post by Sora Nakai on Mar 11, 2021 22:54:52 GMT -5
Linking arms with her best friend as they made their way towards the karaoke place, Sora's face shifted into a bit of a pout when Amaya requested the first song. "Awh, come on, you always get the first song, and you're so good it's tough for me to follow it up!" The pout got more dramatic as she went on.
She couldn't hold the pout for more than a moment or so though after she finished speaking, almost immediately breaking out into giggles. "Of course you can have the first song, I don't mind!" she said, still giggling at her own dramatics. "And yes, we have to do Mystic Serenade together, I'd dump you if we didn't," she said, tone still entirely light in contrast to her threat - which was completely in jest, naturally.
Karaoke was one of the constants of her friendship with Amaya, probably the only thing they'd done together more often was cooking. Karaoke duets were practically a sacred ritual for them, and it was one she was looking forward to doing again.
She unlinked her arm from Amaya's as the approached the door to Care-a-oke and darted ahead to grab it. Holding it open, she turned back to her best friend with a grin. "After you, Miss Idol," she said, gesturing in with her free arm.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Mar 13, 2021 0:35:47 GMT -5
Karaoke was the most fun that Amaya had in her downtime. Deep down in the far regions of her heart she knew that it was only an outlet for the growing frustration and delusion she felt toward cooking. An outlet that was going to disappear once she graduated school and began working full time as a chef or other important partner to the family business. You didn't have time to sing when you were cooking up brand new dishes to win over a wider audience, writing new cook books to earn spots on television shows and the like. At least not that she had seen based on the insane schedule her sisters kept upon entering the work force. Sure they were successful, but to Amaya the idea alone of spending that much time... cooking.. seemed so empty and soulless. Yet she had promises to keep, so whatever her real desires might be, she would enter that world too. It made these outings with Sora all the more important to her - a chance to enjoy time with the person closest to her without the industry getting in the way.
When they arrived at the new karaoke place, Amaya's mind went immediately into active scouting mode. She was pretty knowledgeable about these sorts of spots, but there was always the chance that something would surprise her. The first thing to catch her attention was how fresh the paint and furnishings inside were - the place couldn't have been open longer than a week at most. A very clinical beige for the walls with pinks and reds as highlight colors pulled the theme together, though the slightly padded chairs in the lobby were a little nicer than she'd expect. Amaya noted with amusement that their cushions were heart shaped too; she nodded in approval. Various posters adorned the walls, promoting either newly released songs you could sing or some special food offered for you to munch on. Very standard - the girl at the counter dressed in a pink nurse's gown, complete with cap, was different though. Sticking to the theme. Excellent, that was some dedication.
"Welcome~! Do you have an appointment, ladies?" the chipper employee asked, to which Amaya smirked. Playing the part of a nurse.
"Well no, but we do have an urgent need.. to sing," Amaya replied, knowing full well how corny that line was. She didn't care, didn't even flinch from it. This was her world, one where the Kawahashi name meant only one girl's love of song.
After signing in with her own information, Amaya asked about and received a point card. Always good to have that tool for when she came back - the more she visited, the more benefits the card gave her. Soon a pink basket with two microphones with plastic coverings on the head and a portable console for selecting songs in the room was placed on the desk for her. A coy nod from Amaya acknowledged the fast service, and she also received cups for the drink bar.. well, more of a large selection of soft drink flavors. It was complimentary with a first visit. This place was good. After handing a cup to Sora, she looked at the room number they'd been given - 6. Not a bad spot at all. From what her ears told her there weren't many other people here right now, so she could really let loose.
Just as she was headed to the drink bar, the 'nurse' called to her, "Not alone this time, Kawahashi-san? I'm glad."
Amaya then realized this girl had worked at a different karaoke place in Fukui previously. She laughed nervously, then got her cup of melon soda mixed with whatever was next to it and hurried out the door. As much as she liked karaoke, she didn't want Sora to catch on that she went alone a lot. For now she led the way to their room - a nice little place with a couple of not-quite-couches next to a rectangular table opposite the TV screen where the lyrics would appear. There was a phone on the wall to call the front desk for any food or drink orders, or to extend their reservation time beyond the first hour. With a sigh of relief, Amaya kicked off her shoes and took a seat on one of the couches. The console was removed from the basket and she began searching for her first song.
"Not too bad. It's very clean, and the staff seems nice," she noted, "Sora-chan, what'd you get to drink? And any recommendations? I know I'm average at best with this but.. I aim to please."
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Post by Sora Nakai on Mar 15, 2021 0:05:07 GMT -5
It took a minute for Sora to understand the decor and outfits of Care-a-oke which then made her want to slap herself the moment she got it. On the bright side, it seemed Amaya had taken a similar moment to figure the place out as well. Still, this was definitely one of the nicer spots she and her best friend had found over their years. And that was no small measure, given there were very few karaoke places in Kyoto they hadn't visited. Well, not counting the ones that only let in adults.
Amaya's response to the receptionist earned an eyeroll and a groan for the sheer level of corny. She was still shaking her head as she put down her own information. It was from a place of love but really, Amaya could be really ridiculous sometimes. The ridiculousness of her friend was quickly put out of her mind by a much more pressing concern - what flavor of soda to get. Sora was quite focused on her internal debate between lemon-lime or melon that it was quite a surprise when Amaya started giggling next to her. If nothing else though, it settled her debate, and she filled her cup up with the lemon-lime - if she wanted melon she could always steal Amaya's cup. It wouldn't be the first time she'd done that, after all. "What's so funny Amaya-chan?" she asked before realizing Amaya had already headed over to the room. Really, Amaya could be so excitable about these places, Sora thought with a smile and a friendly eyeroll as she made her way after her friend.
Amaya was already searching for a song when Sora plopped down in the seat next to her with an arm about her friend's shoulders. "I went for the lemon-lime, I figured if you got the melon I should go with something else," she said, leaning in to take a look at the list of songs. "And while it may be nice and neat, the theme is such a terrible pun I can't believe anyone let them get a business license with it." She couldn't help but start giggling again at the ridiculous of the name.
She stifled her giggles and quickly adopted a mock offended attitude the moment Amaya mentioned her ability level at singing, though. "Don't insult me like that, Amaya-chan, you're better at this than me and I am at least average, so you're definitely more than that." Sora burst into laughter again and dropped the attitude while leaning back into the sofa.
"Surprise me," she said, smiling and still giggling. "You know you could never disappoint me with your choice in music. It's not like we're making Eclairs!"
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Mar 15, 2021 22:14:23 GMT -5
Reassure though she might, Sora's words didn't totally convince Amaya that she was that good of a singer. She was pretty sure that she was all right and could stay on tune fairly well since all her end of song scores were at least 95 or higher. Good enough to be much more than average? That she wasn't sure about at all no matter how confident her friend felt about her singing. That didn't stop her from enjoying the heck out of every song that she chose to sing, be it alone or with company. A lot of options presented themselves to her as she scrolled through what was new and what was performed by a couple of specific artists originally. Amaya was definitely having a hard time making a choice about which to choose, but that was part of the fun. That was, until someone had to mention the one topic which caused her to loose all sense of joy in what she was doing. Cooking.
Sora's remark about Eclairs was especially egregious. There were just far too many rules to make a proper eclair in the traditional French fashion, which was all people would want out of their eclairs. Despite the culinary acumen she possessed, Amaya could never get them quite right. The last couple she'd tried had ended up looking like deflated zeppelins more than tasty treats anyone would want to eat. Just thinking about making them brought the deadpan look of soulless cooking to her face, lingering as she stared at her friend for a long awkward moment. Only a song with the right amount of energy was going to eradicate the foul taste of cooking from her mind and mouth.
"I made up my mind," Amaya announced simply, punching in the number for a song with the deadpan expression drifting away. Once the music started, she was smiling cheerfully as if nothing resembling cooking had been mentioned.
She even danced with the music a bit, in time enough that it almost suggested she had been practicing. In actuality she'd just watched the intro for that anime so many times that she subconsciously memorized parts of it and did them when singing or humming it. By the time the song ended Amaya had really worked out the frustrations of cooking coming up, replacing it with enthusiasm for performing. Without even looking at the score of 100 on the screen, she turned to Sora and smirked. Amaya sit her mic down and motioned toward the console.
"Want to do the duet right now, or save it for later? Either way it's your turn to pick," Amaya told her, then took a sip of her drink. The melon flavor was expected.. the iced tea that she'd accidentally mixed in was not. For a moment her face screwed up all funny at the taste, but then she decided it was fine and sipped it again.
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Post by Sora Nakai on Mar 19, 2021 23:12:56 GMT -5
The deadpan stare Amaya gave Sora was met with a cheeky grin, the brunette having no idea the emotions she had stirred up in her friend. The abrupt decision was a little unexpected, but before Sora could even say anything else, Amaya had already gotten set up and ready to sing. "Dazzle me, Amaya-chan!" she cheered as the song started up. Whenever they came to Karaoke together, Sora would nearly always have the thought that in another life, Amaya would have been an excellent idol. She had the voice, the moves (which did look like it was straight out of the opening of Tokimeki School Idol Club), and the winning smile. Really, about the only thing missing right now was a crowd of cheering supporters. Well, a crowd of more than one, that is. Sora did give a standing ovation at the end of the song, and a well deserved one it was. "That was amazing! And you said you weren't that good at this, Amaya-chan. I barely ever get 100s like you do," she said, grabbing the console and scrolling through the choices. "Lemme solo first as a warm up before I try and sing next to you, okay? We can do the duet next!"She scrolled through the list, quickly finding a few of her go-tos and paused, debating her options. Should she go with an old favorite or maybe something more adventurous? Today felt like a day for a bit of adventure, and made decision. "Don't judge me to hard on this - I don't know it by heart yet," she said. She punched in the number and got herself set up. The music kicked in a moment later. While she was clearly having a good time, it was abundantly clear to anyone who could watch the performance that Sora was nowhere near as polished as her friend, and even mixed up a couple lines along the way. Still, she was smiling through it all, even as the 82 showed up on the console. Sora took an overly dramatic bow to her friend before taking her seat and grabbing her soda. "I did warn you I didn't know it by heart yet." she said between sips. "Duet now or do you want to do another solo for me? Sora honestly wouldn't mind either way, she did love to listen to Amaya sing.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Mar 20, 2021 22:40:59 GMT -5
That 100 had been the answer to the topic of cooking - a statement that that wouldn't stand. Not here, within the sacred walls of the karaoke room. The outside world, her family and her own promises in particular, demanded that her world revolve around the kitchen. In here, and only in here, was she fully free of all expectations other than that she would sing. It was her domain. And in this domain of music, there was only joy. No cooking allowed, nor talk of cooking. There was of course room for surprises - like the song that Sora chose to sing for her first time up. That particular one wasn't one Amaya had expected to hear, especially so early on! Still she was all smiles as she cheered on her friend. To top it off, her friend's score was pretty good all things considered.
When Sora had finished, Amaya stood up and clapped, "Hey, 82 isn't bad at all! I think you did a great job, Sora-chan!" Of course now the question was just what she should do next, song wise.
There were a couple of options on the table, and both were good. They had been discussing joining together for a duet earlier, and that could be a lot of fun. On the other hand such a performance as her friend had just given deserved another good solo to compliment it. Amaya needed to consider those options for a moment, so she sat down and took a sip of her melon soda/ice tea monstrosity. Actually, she thought, it wasn't that bad once you got used to it. At least she had to tell herself that. Flavors were something that she did enjoy experiencing, just not making the things that had those flavors. And to be honest she had long thought that Sora's food tasted a heck of a lot better than her own; there was just something about the things her friend did and made that were just a bit more wonderful. Amaya smiled over at her friend and then decided it was time to jump in with another solo instead of the duet quite yet.
"Well, the duet.. can it wait just a bit? I have another song I'd like to do," she requested, then proceeded to select her next song. It was the opening from a yuri anime that she had recently discovered; a few years old but still very solid. With voice actresses who could sing super well! It had no dance but Amaya ended up kind of improvising a bit on her own with it. Once it finished, she put her mic down and suddenly realized she might have shown a bit too much of her secret interests (girls' love anime/novels/comics/anything) to a friend who didn't know about them. With a bit of a blush she sat down again and laughed as a 95 appeared on the screen.
"Well! That didn't go too bad.. just a song I heard once and liked enough to learn," Amaya remarked. She looked at the menu that came with the room and asked, "Hey, how about you get another song going, and I'll order us something sweet to snack on?"
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Post by Sora Nakai on Mar 23, 2021 22:25:41 GMT -5
It was with more energy than might be expected after a day of exploring the city that Sora bounced back to her seat with - she always felt more energized after the first song she sang. They'd be dead on their feet by the time the place closed (and that had happened before, they'd skipped a proper dinner in favor of snacks and Karaoke until they were told to leave because they were closing for the night. They'd gotten quite the lecture for that when they got home, too. Totally worth it, to Sora's mind), but for now she was riding high. The song Amaya picked was one she wasn't familiar with, but with her friend singing, it didn't matter in the slightest. If anyone asked her, Sora would tell them that Amaya could take any song and make into something absolutely amazing without changing a thing - that was just the power of her voice. She jumped up and cheered with the canned audience as the score came up on the screen, already reaching out to grab the console and pick her own song. "Ninety two, huh? That's actually something I can aspire to match here," she said. Okay, so if that energy bust got her a little competitive, it happened. "Oooo yeah, you know what I like!" she added on in regards to the snacks, before turning her attention back to the console. Her brow furrowed in concentration as she scrolled through the song list. "Where is it, where is it... Ah! Here we go!" She made her selection and stepped up into place. "So unfair that I have to go to my regulars to try and match you on a song you've only heard a couple times," she said while rolling her eyes. The music kicked in a moment later, and she was off. Sora had her own choreographed dance for this song, but then, it made an appearance about every other time they came out for karaoke. It had started out as an improvised little thing, but over its many appearances it had been refined into a true routine, one that she knew by heart and could probably do in her sleep. She struck the final pose and grinned, confident she'd gotten into the high 90s with that performance. Her jaw dropped as the score came up - 91. "Ah, come on, really?" Sora whined, rather dismayed at her score. "One under yours, Amaya-chan, how is that fair?!" She flopped down into her seat, clearly pouting, and swiped Amaya's drink, since it was closer. She nearly spit it out. "What is that?!" she demanded as soon as she'd gotten it down. Whatever it was, it was gross, and Sora quickly grabbed her own lemon-lime to wash away that foul taste... only to find that with the citrus added, it wasn't terrible. "Wait hold on, let me try something." She grabbed both drinks and sipped them together, swirling them around. "That's... actually not bad with the lemon added, is that tea you put in with the melon? That's a really interesting flavor combination."
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Mar 24, 2021 22:09:31 GMT -5
Amaya had already forgotten about any thoughts of cooking and the soul crushing feeling of doom they gave her. It was the all conquering power of song. Just a couple of them had been enough to purge her of the darkness of the kitchen; for the duration of the stay she wouldn't even give passing consideration to the fact they'd have to leave eventually. Probably a little earlier than when they lived in Kyoto, otherwise the other girls in the dorms might get upset with them. Or tell someone in charge who would be. But no! Now was not the time for that, it was time for song! More specifically Sora's next song, which Amaya listened to very carefully. Her friend was a decent singer in her own right, and this song had the added treat of Sora dancing too.
Just like Amaya, Sora had either learned or made up a dance to a song. Honestly Amaya was pretty impressed by that alone, it showed just how much her friend enjoyed what she was doing. For a moment in the lights of the karaoke room, her friend seemed to have a shine.. or a sparkle of some kind.. to her. Amaya's posture improved as she leaned forward and looked for a tambourine, maraca or maybe just a pen light to cheer Sora on with. None of these was on hand so she turned on an app that changed her phone's light different colors, and used that as a light stick instead. At first Amaya was going to rush to compliment her friend, but the girl's reaction to only getting a 91 suddenly convinced her to change directions.
With a shrug, she replied, "Oh, I suppose it just recognizes a true artist when..." Amaya was instantly snickering, unable to keep that act up around her best friend. This had only just subsided when Sora reacted to the ice tea/melon soda in Amaya's cup.. which caused Amaya to burst out laughing again. Clearly her friend hadn't had any idea that the drink might be unappealing, which made her reaction all the more funny. Even as her friend combined both drinks and found that combo more palatable. Amaya was laughing so hard that she fell over onto her side, hitting the sofa cushion with her hand as she tried to regain her composure. It took a moment, but finally she sat up again and grinned at her friend.
"I'm glad you like it.. it's.. the work of a true genius of flavor," Amaya remarked before immediately punching in her next song, one that was different from her usual idol and pop fare. Within seconds she had gone from all but rolling in the aisle with laughter to commanding the space she was in. While she didn't know the dance that went with this one, she just let her body move with the beat, swaying her hips with the heavier beats.
Once she finished, Amaya tossed some of her hair over her shoulder and smirked - right as the screen displayed a score of 96. Again not looking at the score she held a hand out to Sora, "Here, before the next song, let me give you some pointers.. that.. um.. I read on a blog." They were totally the techniques she used but she didn't want to admit how serious she was about singing. Better to let Sora think it was something off the net rather than that.
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Post by Sora Nakai on Mar 30, 2021 13:36:54 GMT -5
So distracted by the interesting mix of flavors from the two drinks, Sora nearly missed her best friend setting up her next song. "Genius of flavors and music, it's so unfair," she groused. Of course, there was no ill intent in the statement, only a little bit of friendly teasing and annoyance about her own score relative to Amaya's.
Sora found herself very surprised for a moment when the music started up - this was definitely not either of their usual style for karaoke. Of course, Sora thought, that absolutely did not preclude Amaya from rocking the heck out of the song. Maybe it was because of the change in style, but Sora had never really noticed just how captivating Amaya could really be when she was singing. It was like the rest of the world fell away with just a spotlight shining on her.
Belatedly, Sora realized she was still sitting on the couch and just staring at her friend's performance, and leaped up to be a proper audience. Eager to return the favor from her own song, Sora's phone quickly became an impromptu light stick in its own right. While neither of them were really dancing to it right now, it was definitely a song that deserved a dance when it was fully mastered. Of course, Amaya already had nearly mastered it, what with the 96 that showed up after the song. "So unfair," she complained again.
"You really can find anything online, huh?" she said, dropping her phone on the table. She stepped up and took Amaya's hand. "Alright, Amaya-sensei, what do you have to show me?" she grinned, fairly certain her form of address would get her friend blushing and flustered.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Apr 4, 2021 14:54:38 GMT -5
"Ha! Yeah, pretty much everything you'd ever want to know," Amaya replied, happy that her ruse seemed to have worked; it was better to just keep on like she was a future cook and nothing else. It meant her friend could pursue her dream while Amaya was there at her side. That was what was important, right? The person with the realistic goal should be the one chasing her dream, and the one who'd made a promise to be there with her would.. well, be there with her. Singing didn't get you a living, no matter how fun it was, how liberating it felt to partake in. But.. that was not a topic she wanted to be thinking about when they were at karaoke. Here, in this palace of song, she would immerse herself fully in the joy of music.
"O-Okay well.. tips. On singing. And stuff," Amaya replied, the predicted blush appearing on her face as she stepped fully behind her friend.
Well, where to even begin? It was one thing to learn about things that helped you relax and enter a state where you were even better at singing your heart out. To teach that to another person was another thing entirely. Probably best to start with some basics, just the simple stuff that helped Amaya loosen up before performing for her usual audience of one. So she placed her hands on Sora's shoulders and gently began to massage them, just like she'd seen in a book somewhere. What book precisely she didn't remember, but it was definitely one that had helped her feel more relaxed when doing things she liked. After she felt like she had the rhythm done right, she leaned in over Sora's shoulder to impart the advice she had managed to cobble together in her mind.
"So now, close your eyes and shut out any other thought. Just focus on the moment here and now," Amaya whispered in her friend's ear, "Then take some deep breaths in and out, nice and slow. Relax your mind and just focus on the feeling of that breath." She leaned closer, hands massaging her friend's shoulders as she tried to think of what else she could tell her friend. Actually, come to think of it, it was pretty nice to be this close. The warmth of Sora next to her, the smell of Sora's hair.. wait. This was a little weird wasn't it? She'd seen these kinds of scenes in books too.. wait again. What book was it? Oh no!
Somewhat awkwardly Amaya stepped back and, blushing, laughed nervously, "Well, that's something that works for me anyway.. I.. um.. next song?"
"You really can find anything online, huh?" she said, dropping her phone on the table. She stepped up and took Amaya's hand. "Alright, Amaya-sensei, what do you have to show me?" she grinned, fairly certain her form of address "would get her friend blushing and flustered.
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Post by Sora Nakai on May 6, 2021 21:51:07 GMT -5
Sora was absolutely delighted how flustered she'd managed to get Amaya just by calling her 'sensei.' For all that she got unbelievably focused and serious when cooking, Amaya really was a softy at heart. However, as amusing as it was to see her bestie like this, Sora knew this was not the time to be giggling about flustering her. Still smiling, she managed to stop herself from laughing as Amaya got ready for... whatever she was going to be teaching.
Feeling her friend's hands on her shoulders wasn't exactly expected, but hey, Amaya was so good at singing this had to be something that was pretty useful! Although if this was meant to be calming her down, her heart certainly didn't get the memo, as it suddenly felt like it was pounding. Maybe that was the point though?
Suddenly Amaya's voice was next to her ear, sending sparkles up and down her neck and sending her heart even faster. Her eyes had already fluttered closed before Amaya had even told her to do so, and really, the rest of Care-a-oke and frankly, Fukui, could have fallen off the face of the planet and she wouldn't have noticed. However, her brain seemed to have also temporarily decided to stop processing what Amaya was saying. After a moment though, it did catch back up. "Deep breaths. Okay. Right."
Brain fully functional once again, she hurried to comply with her 'sensei's' instructions and took a few long deep breaths in, and then out. In and out. And what do you know, it actually seemed to be working! Her heart was coming down from its breakneck pace and she could definitely feel tension flowing out of her system.
Her eyes blinked open when suddenly there was a void at her back. She looked back questioningly at Amaya, wondering if she should keep going on her own. Then again, her focus was broken so maybe best to get back to music?
"Well, I can certainly see why you like that technique. It's certainly something!" That being said, while she might use it before her songs, she somehow had a feeling it wouldn't be quite the same without Amaya standing behind her.
But back to music! Briefly taking a moment to crack her neck, Sora leaned down and grabbed the tablet again to pick another song. Then she paused and looked up at her friend. "What do you say we do that duet now, Amaya-chan? With what we just did I'm probably as close to your level as I'll ever be," she smiled, scrolling through to Mystic Serenade, the OP to a new anime they'd fallen in love with together. "What better time to do it?"
Maybe it was just the artificial lighting, but for a moment Sora could swear that Amaya had a halo above her head, like the angelic costume of the main character in that show.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on May 7, 2021 21:35:10 GMT -5
Thankfully, Sora once again did not notice Amaya's awkwardness at realizing some similarities between her actions and those of a character in a novel she'd read. It was way better to just keep the pace moving forward toward more songs and merriment. This was Sora after all - they were inseparable friends, and she was certainly not someone to be having that kind of thoughts about right? Yet sitting there in the comfy, private room she found the very sight of the other girl captivating. So full of joy, so kind and friendly to everyone, even a failure of a Hayakawa like her. Heck, more than that Sora was just cute. A wistful smile crossed Amaya's lips before she chased those thoughts away with another sip of her horrifying tea/melon soda mixture. Yup. It was still bitter.
With that fresh on her mind instead of novel feelings Amaya was able to return her attention to the proposal which had been presented to her. Each of them had done a number of songs thus far. The time had come, it seemed, for them to do a duet together. This was the sort of thing which she enjoyed the most about their joint outings to karaoke places. Joining together with her very special friend in song! Voices blending together in harmony, taking turns singing lines with and to each other, creating a beautiful tapestry of joy and love together. The love of friends. Probably. Needless to say Amaya's eyes lit up at the suggestion of finally tackling Mystic Serenade together. She dramatically grabbed her mic and then looked to Sora with an impish grin. Without warning she hopped next to Sora and struck an idol pose with a hand up near her face in a 'V' gesture.
"Your invitation has been accepted," Amaya said with a wink, "Just be warned I haven't really learned the lyrics super well.. even if I have been listening to it on repeat lately."
In a moment the opening notes of Mystic Serenade played out around them, and it was showtime. Amid the multi colored lights flashing with the music within the room, Amaya found herself having a hard time. Not with the song really. It wasn't as hard as some of the things that she'd learned on her own in the past. No, it was a challenge because she was finding herself splitting her attention between the lyrics on the screen and the girl she was sharing the room with. Whatever expressions Sora showed on her face were just as important to Amaya in the moment as the actual song was. While they went into the second chorus Amaya shuffled closer to her friend without really noticing what she was doing. She listened closely to Sora's voice and blended her own with that of her partner in crime on the fly. By the time the final note hit, Amaya had a giant smile on her face.. and an arm around Sora's shoulders.
At last noticing their closeness, Amaya removed her arm and laughed, "A ha ha.. well, that was pretty intense, wasn't it? I think we did pretty well." Hoping to change the subject, yet again, she suggested, "I have.. an idea... for a challenge. We pick songs for each other to sing. Keep it a secret until the other girl sees it on the screen. Sound good?"
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Eagle
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Post by Sora Nakai on May 11, 2021 23:02:50 GMT -5
Her best friend's best idol pose (and how was Amaya that good at it that once again the world completely fell away except for her?) was met with a delighted giggle and a gigawatt smile as Sora confirmed her selection and swept up her own mic.
"You're not the only one who's had it on repeat - But I actually learned the words. Mostly." She stuck out her tongue at her best friend, delighted to get one over on her friend in this arena. Those opportunities had become few and far between over the past few years, so Sora savored her small moments of being able to out do her.
After that, there was no more time for talk - they had a duet to sing and Sora would be caught dead before putting any less effort into it than Amaya did. Not that Sora found that easy, what with the show Amaya was putting on beside her. It was so nice to see Amaya's face light up and to see the sparkles in her eyes - so different from the deadly serious look she adopted in the kitchen. There was something impressive about that intensity and drive she showed there, but... Sora liked it better when she could have fun with Amaya like this - not that they didn't have fun together while cooking. It was just... different. She couldn't put her finger on it.
While they'd started out relatively close to each other, the second chorus found Sora mimicking her friend's motion and drawing closer to her. She thought about linking their arms together, only for Amaya to beat her to the punch and throw an arm over her shoulder. Naturally, she responded by wrapping her own arm around he friend as they belted out the final lines.
The brief pang of disappointment as they broke apart after the song was quickly lost in the glorious high of the 94 on the screen. "I think we did a little better than pretty well! Look at that!" It was the highest duet score they'd gotten in a good while. "I dunno how, but that technique you did definitely worked!" She grinned and threw her arms around her friend for a quick hug.
"Ooooh, now that's an idea!" Amaya's challenge certainly had merit - there were a few songs she could think of that Amaya wouldn't likely pick, but that she would do amazingly well with. Stepping back, Sora picked up the tablet and handed it to Amaya, cat that ate the canary grin on her face. "It is my turn to do a solo, surprise me Amaya-chan~!" She spun about and took her position, blowing a kiss to her friend in her best imitation of an idol.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on May 12, 2021 21:19:46 GMT -5
"O-oh! Well, I'm glad that it helped then," Amaya laughed a bit after their duet was over. She flashed the peace sign with both hands and winked, "Just leave it to Kawahashi-sensei and your karaoke scores will improve by at least 10%!" That made her laugh a bit as her mind
Honestly Amaya really hadn't thought that much about the technique that she'd done for Sora. Well, not much beyond the sense that it might be similar to something that would be found in one of the novels that she had a strong fondness for. If that technique also had gotten her a spontaneous hug and a fun duet, then it maybe it was worth more than just the vague hint of similarity to certain fiction. Then again, it wasn't really that uncommon for the two of them to hug or sing a duet. Why did it kind of feel like more than just the quick show of affection than that it had appeared to be at first. This was something that Amaya pondered as she took a seat and began thinking about what song to choose for Sora to sing.
Getting a very good score on a duet was a nice way to set her friend up for success on the next song, but which song was it? Her friend was all warmed up and ready to go so this should be something fun and suited to her. For a bit she was eerily silent while she gave it a lot of thought. That and glanced up from the tablet at Sora with a playful grin on her face. At least until she noticed the pose which Sora struck just after handing off the tablet to Amaya. Instantly brain melted a bit and despite the colorful lighting in their room, all she could see was the visage of Sora standing there. Blowing a kiss to her. Amaya's eyes went wide for a moment as she felt an unexpected warmth in her cheeks and thoughts similar to that comparison to fiction. The comparison that she really didn't need coming back up at this point in time.
So.. song that suited Sora. Instantly a brilliant inspiration hit her and she punched in the name of one that she felt suited Sora's energy and style. With a chuckle she looked to her friend and said, "I think you'll like this one! I'll be cheering along with you!"
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Eagle
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Post by Sora Nakai on May 12, 2021 23:11:06 GMT -5
The song Amaya had picked for her wasn't one that Sora knew too well, but it was one she could definitely handle. And so in her style. Her best friend had made a near perfect choice, she thought as she improvised a bit of a dance along with the music. The dance wasn't perfect, but neither was her singing, and she did flub a couple lines, but honestly? Right now, she didn't care that much about her score. She was still riding high on the duet, and with how well she knew this song, she thought she was doing pretty darn good! She ended her dance with an idol pose as the final notes of the song played, and held it for a few moments after. She then put her microphone down before striking another pose as the score came up - a solid 83, not bad in her books. "That was a great choice, Maya-chan!" she said as she swept up the tablet into her own hands and flopped onto the couch. There was a brief moment of shuffling around to get fully comfortable with her legs hanging over the edge of the couch and her head in Amaya's lap as she scrolled through the songs, a serious furrow on her brow as she tried to find the perfect song. Suddenly she paused, blinked, and then looked up at Amaya. "Maya-chan, did we ever actually order those snacks earlier?" She asked, having just realized there were no sweet things to munch on, as there usually were when they went out to karaoke. "I'd say that's a sign of a good session, I don't think we've ever forgotten to get food before!" She laughed and turned her attention back to the song list. In the end it came down to a choice of two songs, both of them something Amaya would be able to put on a heck of a show with. She hummed to herself, wondering which would be better - they were rather similar, so she'd only end up picking one during this challenge. With that in mind, she picked the one she personally liked a little better. "Alright, this was a bit of a tough choice, buuuuuut..." she said, reluctantly removing herself from the rather comfortable position she was in, and grabbing a quick sip of her drink. "You're gonna have a great time with this!"
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on May 16, 2021 15:47:12 GMT -5
As soon as the music hit it was as if Amaya were in the audience for a Live by an idol or other singer. Even if this was just a private little karaoke room with her closest friend, it was a concert venue like no other. Not only was it wonderful to see that her choice of song really did suit Sora, but there was something more in play as her friend sang. Anything outside of their little room melted away for her. Just Sora putting her best into a song she probably didn't know super well. Amaya's face lit up more with each line and she soon had her phone held up like a light stick at an authentic live. While she wasn't cheering like a super idol fan, Amaya sang along with a couple lines as if she were a backup member. By the end of the number she was applauding, wide smile on her face. If only they could do this sort of thing as often as they liked without school work and cooking getting in the way.
Things took a turn for the unexpected when Sora decided to adopt a slightly different approach in her search for what song to choose for Amaya. Amaya stared in amused surprise when her friend just went ahead and lay down on the couch next to her. Sora's head rested on her lap, and instantly that feeling of the rest of the world melting away returned with force. For a long drawn out moment Amaya's eyes gazed down into her friend's, finding solace and comfort in the shared moment that was theirs and theirs alone. Like two stars out in the cosmos shining for each other and each other alone - even if they were apart their light would reach each other and brighten each other always. Without realizing it Amaya's hand reached over and nearly ran through Sora's hair.. until what her friend said about snacks finally hit Amaya. The spell was snapped then and there and she suddenly had something else on her mind.
"Huh? Snacks? O-oh yeah! We didn't actually order anything did we?" Amaya laughed, "Maybe it makes for a successful karaoke session, but that session's made me work up an appetite."
While her fried debated what to select for her Amaya grabbed the phone which was conveniently not too far away on the wall. Since they'd been out to karaoke places often enough, Amaya had a pretty decent idea what to get. Within moments she had placed that order with their usual favorites, which would be ready in a few minutes for them. In the meantime a selection had been made and a song now awaited her voice. A consummate performer in the booth, she stood up and grabbed her mic as the music's intro played. Somewhat familiar, but not one that she was super familiar with. The beat really helped her start moving with the music, at first hopping in place and then inventing a few moves on the spot. Yet as she sang she occasionally had flashes of that mental image of twin stars shining for each other pop into her head. Uncharacteristically she stumbled over a couple of lines too; by the end she was nailing the lines like usual, and she bowed after completing her performance.
The end result was a solid 80, low for Amaya but otherwise not too bad. This made her chuckle, though her confusion over the unexpected distractions remained as she took the console to select a song for Sora. Amaya quickly thought of one to punch in, and it was ready for her to hit the enter button within seconds. First though, she looked to Sora again and poked her in the shoulder, "Your turn, Sora-chan! I think I can admit you won round 1... good luck with this one!"
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Eagle
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Post by Sora Nakai on Jul 29, 2021 23:36:52 GMT -5
Encouraged by the rapid selection of a song for her, Sora swept up the microphone and fell into a neutral pose, ready to improvise a little dance off of whatever was about to come up. As the music kicked in, she started with a simple swaying motion to the beat of the song, slowly becoming a bit more elaborate as she got into the verse and chorus. The dance stayed relatively simple - the song didn't seem to call for more, and in any case, Sora had a few thoughts bouncing around in her head distracting her a bit. It wasn't too obvious, and it didn't seem to show that much. The 81 on the screen as she finished was rather welcome. "I liked that song, Maya-chan," she said with a smile, dropping the mic back on the table as she moved back to the couch. "Only thing is I think that song suits you better than me." As their food had arrived towards the end of her performance, Sora was all too happy to scoop up a sweet treat before taking her position back on the couch again. "You do better with the softer songs like that than me. Lyrics don't really fit either of us though, but it's still pretty!"She took the time to really savor her snack and grab another one to much on before she picked up the tablet and starting to look for something for Amaya to sing. In contrast to how quickly Amaya had selected the last song, Sora was taking her time scrolling through the list, looking for a song similar to the one she had just sung. Finally landing on one, Sora stuffed the last of the daifuku in her mouth and punched in the selection. "Shofter shongs lik dis un," she started, mouth still full. Pausing for a moment to swallow, and reddening slightly in embarrassment, she then continued. "This one! It's a lot like the one you gave me and you're gonna kick my but with it!" A winning smile and thumbs up accompanied this statement - Sora really did feel that Amaya did great with songs like these, and was totally willing to take a loss in this round to hear her do it well.
She had won the last round anyway, so it was only fair to keep it interesting.
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Post by Amaya Kawahashi on Aug 8, 2021 15:26:31 GMT -5
Having snacks was a welcome turn of events for Amaya when you got right down to it. Singing was something that she put so much energy and heart into that it could work up a bit of an appetite. Getting a chance to munch a few things between numbers was always incredibly welcome on her end. As she eagerly chomped down on some of their spread Amaya was presented with another fun performance by her friend. Even though she probably took singing more seriously than her friend, Amaya absolutely loved watching Sora perform. Just adding a cute outfit with a foofy skirt and some ribbons would make her a wonderful idol! In fact Amaya could see it now, the skirt's swaying making her friend appear as if she were floating on air. If only she had a light stick to cheer on her friend, she would be in full support mode.
Then the song was over and the stage Sora had seemed to be on proved to exist only in Amaya's mind. She blinked a couple of times as her imagination calmed down a bit and she was brought back to reality. With the remnants of a snack sticking out of the corner of her mouth awkwardly. At realizing this she sucked the snack piece into her mouth and finished it off. Thankfully her friend wouldn't judge her too harshly for that sort of thing. Instead she made a statement about softer softer songs suiting Amaya. Suddenly Amaya's cheeks felt warm and she welcomed the distraction of a song chosen by her friend. It was a validation of the sort of cuter things that she liked to sing and, if it were possible, wear. Not that she couldn't do cool as a style as well, but idols were fun when they were cute and bringing smiles to other cute people.
This steeled her for the next song that had been punched in. She had a cute person right here who meant the world to her and she wanted to make that person smile with her performance. With the beginning riffs she was already swaying gently, getting a feel for the music as she went along. While this was not one that she knew very well, it was fairly easy to follow. Amaya stumbled on some of the lyrics a bit but she made sure to put her all into the vocals despite that fact. If Sora liked her singing songs like this then she would absolutely do her all to make Sora happy. Though the song was about friendship.. and somehow she couldn't help but feel that what she and Sora had went way beyond just friends. What was that? Amaya had no idea.
When she finished, she glanced at the screen and smiled as an 85 appeared. Not bad, really! Amaya immediately went over to the console and went straight for a song that had just popped into her head. It was maybe a little out of their usual wheelhouse, but she thought it would suit Sora. Before hitting 'enter' she looked to Sora and grinned, "So I have this thought.. um.. how 'bout one more round and then a duet again? I have one more duet I want to do tonight. But for now, go rock this one."
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