Galactic Idols (Holey & Lobo) (M)

Wirus system, Imperium Universalum

Bob stood behind the scenes as the preliminaries for the performance were underway. The main attraction of the event was, of course, one of the Imperium's top idols, known to the masses as "Destiny." The audience was massive... over fifty thousand live attendees, along with millions of people watching remotely via Hyperlink network. Destiny definitely had a great deal of fans.

Destiny was not one of Bob's idols. Though he managed five separate teams, so far all of his teams were small time, working tirelessly in order to make their own debut. His interest in this event had nothing to do with Destiny herself, but with the group that was performing the opening act of Destiny's concert... a group of three girls, known as "group one" by his production studio, who he had given the name "Pinky Promise," due in no small part to the fact that their outfits were pink in color.

No amount of practice could fully prepare these girls for their live performance, but at this point, everything was out of Bob's control. All he could due was sit back, behind the scenes and await the performance of these three teens... and no matter how it turned out, he would simply do his job as Manager in order to make sure their future performances were as successful as possible.

The three girls were huddled together before their performance, the youngest of the tree sneaking a peek out at the crowd. "Th-there's...so many people," Aika whispered, just as Hana pulled her away from the curtains. "Well of course there are. How would we perform if no one showed up?" Kasumi tutted, earning a look from both of the others. "I'm just saying...it wouldn't be much of a concert without the people," the fuzzy eared girl mumbled. Hana only sighed, shaking her head at the two. "We're going to be just fine. We've practiced for this, remember? It's going to be great!" she chirped, stinking her smallest finger out in front of each of them. Aika was quick to do the same, and then both girls looked to Kasumi. With a small roll of her eyes, Kasumi also stuck out her pinky, and the three girls interlocked their fingers, just as they were called out to stage.

Hana was the first to bound forward, excitment clear in her steps, while the two other girls followed close behind. They got set up behind the closed curtains, hearing the loud cheers from the audience on the other side. The sound seemed to give them energy, brushing off whatever nerves they had been feeling before. There was a quiet countdown before the curtains opened, and the concert began.

The lights started out dim, before an eruption of color broke out across the stage, lighting up the girls just as the music began to play. Hana was the first to start singing, her soft voice filling the stadium. The song began slow, filling the room with heavy emotion, before it started to pick up near the chorus. The two other girls joined the song, the trio harmonizing as if they had been born to do so. They even danced in sync with one another, their many days of practice paying off for this moment.

Kasumi was the first to adventure a bit, taking off to the edge of the stage. She jumped from the edge, shoes lighting up as she took to hovering through the air. The other two girls soon joined her, the three of them twirling through the air while their sweet voices continued to fill the stadium. The lights followed them as they moved through the air, keeping them within sight of the audience below.

By the time the song came to an end, the girls had returned to the stage, the song slowing once again to end on a sweet, gentle note. The three girls quickly bowed as the crowd cheered, each of them waving as they scampered off the stage to the back. They were all quick to start hunting for their manager, each one still buzzing with excitement.

Bob watched as the curtain was lifted, anxiety welling up within him, but refusing to let it be seen, as he had to act as support for the girls... a rock which they could rely on. His perspective was different from that of the audience, being behind the girls rather than in front of them, but overall, it went very well. It had been a good idea to stick to the fundamentals for their first performance... singing and dancing, without any flashy displays of technology besides the music itself.

The cheers of the crowd were not lost on him. They seemed to approve of these new girls, and as they knew that this was simply an opening act for the main event, they hadn't been expecting anything too overly showy either. It was simple, and it was an effective way to express how cute and adorable the three young girls were on stage.

As the song ended, Bob watched as Destiny made her way up towards the stage. He noted the fact that Destiny stopped to share a few words with the three newcomers... and while he couldn't make out what they were saying, the brief conversation between them seemed rather friendly, as the more experienced idol expressed her appreciation for their opening act.

As Destiny made her way up onto the stage, the cheers exploded into a roar of applause. Bob made his way over to the three girls, pausing in front of them for a time as he tried to figure out what to say. Scratching his head, he managed to say, "...good job." After another awkward silence, he eventually managed to say, "Let's watch Destiny's performance," and began to lead the way towards a viewing room where they could watch the popular idol's live performance.

The three girls had barely made it very far backstage, when they were approached by Destiny herself. The young trio quickly stood a little taller, doing their best to look professional as the older idol came to them. "That was lovely, girls! Absolutely lovely. You three did so good," she praised the three younger idols, earning a few little giggles from the girls. They each thanked her, dipping their heads respectfully. "No no, thank you! Anytime you want to open for me, just have your manager speak with mine. I'd love to see you all again," the woman cooed, giving each girl a gentle hug, before she went off to start her performance.

The younger idol girls were grinning almost ear to ear by the time their manager approached. Though as the man spoke, each girl deflated a little, and a pout even formed on Hana's lips. "Just 'good job?' Didn't we do great?" she chirped, bouncing after the man as he lead him towards the viewing room. "Did you get to see us? You could see us from backstage, couldn't you?" Hana asked, blinking at the man curiously.

On his other side, timid Aika was giving the sleeve of his shirt a few small tugs. "Manager-san? Did...we really do a good job?" she asked, her eyes rather doe-eyed as she followed alongside him. Kasumi was the only one trailing behind a few paces, the girl opting to admire the backstage appliances with mild curiosity. "Destiny was really kind. She said we could open for her whenever we wanted!" the eldest of the three finally spoke up, quickening her steps to walk on the other side of Hana. "Think we'll be able to do it again?" she asked, looking towards their manager.

Bob had no idea how to react to the trio of girls as they surrounded him and began to ask him a series of questions far quicker than he could come up with replies to them. Eventually just settled for nodding and letting out the occasional "Yeah" or "Yes." They seemed to be quite excited and energetic, and for good reason he supposed as they had just finished a successful performance in front of a massive audience.

Feeling the tiny, shy girl tugging on him, the manager gave her a nod and remarked, "Of course." As they continued to chat and show their excitement, Bob was left with Kasumi's final question. "I'll see what I can do," was all he could really say to her. Though Destiny had told them that they were welcome to open for her, booking such an opening was no easy feat, as he had to go through a series of management channels in order to secure a highly coveted slot.

He showed them to the viewing room just as Destiny's performance was beginning. A series of well-placed surveillance devices were set to capture every angle of the performance in three dimensions, to the point where they generated holographic simulations of her performance as if they were part of the crowd. Destiny herself stood on a disc that lifted up into the air and began to spin high above the audience. This offered everyone a clear view up her short outfit as she sang and danced a well-rehearsed, popular song... but Bob supposed that this was simply something that idols had to get used to. At least she wore cute undergarments that matched the rest of her outfit, he supposed.

All of the girls seemed pleased by the little responses they got from their manager, much too excited themselves to expect the same reaction from the man. As soon as they had received all the answers they had needed, they left the man alone for the time being, and returned to conversation between themselves. Hana spoke happily about all the things they had done well. Kasumi would occasionally butt in with little pieces she felt that they needed to work on. While Aika only nodded along in agreement to them both.

As they reached the viewing room, the three girls hurried inside, scurrying over to the screen where they could watch the more experienced idol perform. "Wooah~! She is so amazing," Hana breathed out the words in awe as she watched the performance. All three girls had sat themselves just a short distance away from the screen, watching to catch every detail of the performance in hopes of getting ideas to do as well. "It's so effortless... She's doing everything so perfect," Kasumi praised the performing woman, all three girls clearly mesmerized by the performance. They had seen nearly all of Destiny's performances, mostly from networks. Yet they still were blown away each time they saw another.

The three girl's all gasped as Destiny was lifted into the air on a disc, each of them leaning forward almost in unison. However, Aika was soon leaning back and blushing, one of her hands lifting to muffle a giggle against her palm. The other two didn't seem to notice, and instead Hana looked back towards Bob with a clearly elated gaze. "We'll be able to do that someday, won't we? We'll get to use those high tech gadgets, too?" she asked, making Kasumi looked back at the manager as well.

Bob was glad to see the girls so excited, though he wasn't exactly sure how to express it. It was no small feat booking performances for a few girls who the galaxy had never heard of, scouting out talented girls like these three, and getting them properly trained to the point where they could put on a show that would entertain countless fans... but seeing them so happy afterwards tended to make it all worthwhile.

He observed Destiny's live performance, showing ever so slight a smile as the girls admired the performance of their senpai. He imagined it meant a lot to them to be opening for someone that they looked up to so much, though Bob's goal was to put them up on the same level as Destiny, some day, so that it would be the younger idols who looked up to these three. They had a long road ahead of them... but so long as they never gave up, Bob wouldn't, either.

As the cheerful centerpiece of the trio turned to ask him a question, Bob gave a slight nod. "Eventually," he said in reply to her question, checking the time as the idol's first song came to a close. "It's time for me to leave," he said simply as he turned to head for the door. "I'll see you in the studio Monday afternoon." Since most of the girls were still students, rehearsal and practice tended to take place on weekday afternoons, while most other girls their age had club activities.

Bob himself had a busy schedule, and he needed to catch a hovercab in order to make it in time to oversee Team 4's preparations for their first solo performance on a different planet. It was a much smaller crowd, but rather than simply being the opening performance for a major idol, Team 4 would be the stars of the show. Though he doubted the smaller crowd would have the same effect as the massive crowd that Team 1 had performed before, it would be valuable experience as a stepping stone for their careers.

Hana was clearly pleased by the response she got, even though it didn't seem promising that it would be sometime soon. That fact didn't seem to bother her, and the two older girls focused their attentions to the screen...until Bob spoke again. This time all three girls turned to look back at him, watching as the man headed for the door. Hana was the first of the three to hop up, scurrying over to intercept the man, and block his path to the door. "You're leaving? Already?" she repeated, blinking up at him with a slightly puckered out bottom lip.

Barely a couple seconds after Hana had gotten in his way, there was a hand clasping onto the back of Bob's shirt, giving a few little tugs. "M-manager-san... can't you stay?" Aika whispered from behind the man, attempting to silently coax him back into the room with the small pulls on his shirt. Though Kasumi hadn't gotten up from her place near the viewing screen, she was still watching from a distance. "Yeah, come on! You should watch her with us. We can come up with so many cool ideas, just from watching Destiny perform!" the eldest of the trio insisted, figuring she should join in on getting their manager to stay.

"Just one more song?" Hana bargained now, batting her eyes at the man. Her hands were clasped together, tucked beneath her chin as the common sign of a plea. "Please?" Aika chimed in, releasing Bob's shirt so she could shuffle around and stand beside Hana. The youngest girl mimicked the older's pose, lacing her fingers together and tucking them against her chin.

As Bob was heading towards the exit, he slowed down as Hana moved to intercept him, then stopped entirely when the adorable little Aika took hold of the back of his shirt. Standing still for a moment, he glanced at the three girls, thinking over their request, and calculating the time schedule he had. He did tend to try and allow for some degree of flexibility in time... but he'd need to catch an express cab that was slightly more expensive than the studio budget allowed. The difference, of course, would be coming from his own pocket... but for some reason, he found it impossible to deny these girls.

"Ok," he said eventually. "One more song." He walked over to a couch big enough for three people if they say close together, sitting down in the middle of it and looking at the screen. Destiny's next performance was just about to begin, after she went backstage to do a quick wardrobe change. As she ran back out onto stage, Bob got another glimpse of her panties due to the short length of her skirt... and he thought he saw his name written on them. He quickly shook his head... no, it must have been his imagination, surely.

"We might be able to pull off something similar to this," he remarked, as this particular song and dance involved less technology... though the lyrics were borderline naughty, the sort of thing Destiny could get away with due to her reputation as a sexy-type idol. Pinky Promise was more the innocent cute type group, so the lyrics didn't seem appropriate... though Megitsune might be able to get away with it, he supposed.

The two girls held the positions for as long as it took Bob to consider, their smiles never once faltering. They both cheered when he finally caved, and even Kasumi seemed pleased that the man decided to stay. The two younger girls followed Bob to the couch, each one plopping down on either side of the man. "Kasumi! Come sit!" Hana encouraged, patting the small space that was left on the other side of her. The eldest of the trio soon joined them on the couch, packing them together about as close as they could get. The girls didn't seem to mind, however, and all of their eyes seemed to be glued to the screen.

"You could almost make a game out of how many times her undies flash," Kasumi snickered from her end of the couch, earning an elbow from Hana. "What? It's true," the eldest girl laughed, sinking back onto the couch with a little roll of her eyes. Though all three of them went quiet as the next song began to play, each of them leaning forward just the slightest in anticipation.

All three sets of eyes turned to Bob when he spoke, before quickly going back to the screen to watch their senpai perform. Aika's cheeks gradually became more and more pink as the song went on, her hands lifting to hide her blush against her palms. "I can't believe she gets away with saying some of this stuff," Kasumi laughed quietly, even her cheeks a light shade of pink. "She's popular! Of course she can sing things like that. People love it," Hana mumbled, keeping her gaze on the screen to observe the performance.