[ The rest of the afternoon is such a blur of takes, retakes and rehearsals that the hustle and bustle of work sweeps the candy – and the accompanying talk – from Ai's mind. By the time Miyako returns at the end of the day to pick her up, she's exhausted enough that it's all she can do to clamber into the car and receive a flying leap from Ruby, who gets promptly lectured by Miyako about proper safety in the car and keeping her seatbelt on. Ai just lets the chatter wash over her as she ruffles Ruby's hair and it's not until she gets home and sets her bag down that she hears the clunk and rustle of the box inside and remembers to pass them along.
To her slightly smug satisfaction, the two of them react just as she'd predicted – Ruby delighted and Aqua playing at being aloof even if he couldn't fool Ai. They'd already had dinner with Miyako so Ai lets them have maybe a few too many pieces before bed (they haven't had their teeth brushed yet, so it's fine!) and watches them both scarf them down with a smile of her own. It uh, leaves them both a little sugar buzzed just in time for bed but she thinks it's worth it to put such big smiles on their faces.
As she's putting them both down to sleep, she makes sure to remind them to thank Hiyori if they get a chance. And when she's drifting off to sleep herself that night, Ai finds herself thinking – the little world she's chosen to live in as an idol isn't the kindest place to be, but sometimes the people in it are. It's always a nice surprise when it happens.
She doesn't get a chance to voice the thought to Hiyori the next day, at least not for a good while. The schedule of a TV shoot is much more dense than she's used to, but with Ruby and Aqua around the whole day for her to recharge, she can manage!
She's planning to scurry off and see them again when Hiyori calls out to her and though she can tell the address has piqued some interest, it's nothing she can't handle. She's a pro, isn't she? ]
Heehee, you're just flattering me, Tomoe-san. [ Polite but distant enough to set anyone overhearing at ease. ] I'm just doing my best to keep up with everybody else.
[ And she makes up for the gap by shining so bright, nobody on the other side of the lens notices any difference. Easy. ]
But you have a big one coming up this afternoon, right?
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To her slightly smug satisfaction, the two of them react just as she'd predicted – Ruby delighted and Aqua playing at being aloof even if he couldn't fool Ai. They'd already had dinner with Miyako so Ai lets them have maybe a few too many pieces before bed (they haven't had their teeth brushed yet, so it's fine!) and watches them both scarf them down with a smile of her own. It uh, leaves them both a little sugar buzzed just in time for bed but she thinks it's worth it to put such big smiles on their faces.
As she's putting them both down to sleep, she makes sure to remind them to thank Hiyori if they get a chance. And when she's drifting off to sleep herself that night, Ai finds herself thinking – the little world she's chosen to live in as an idol isn't the kindest place to be, but sometimes the people in it are. It's always a nice surprise when it happens.
She doesn't get a chance to voice the thought to Hiyori the next day, at least not for a good while. The schedule of a TV shoot is much more dense than she's used to, but with Ruby and Aqua around the whole day for her to recharge, she can manage!
She's planning to scurry off and see them again when Hiyori calls out to her and though she can tell the address has piqued some interest, it's nothing she can't handle. She's a pro, isn't she? ]
Heehee, you're just flattering me, Tomoe-san. [ Polite but distant enough to set anyone overhearing at ease. ] I'm just doing my best to keep up with everybody else.
[ And she makes up for the gap by shining so bright, nobody on the other side of the lens notices any difference. Easy. ]
But you have a big one coming up this afternoon, right?