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We open in on two figures, who are opposite in both their heights and their general demeanors. The taller figure was standing almost motionless and staring at the smaller and panicking figure. For those two don't know, the two figures seem like mother and daughter. But any who knows can tell you that the two figures are Rui Yashio and Tsukushi Futaba.
Craning her neck around, Rui took some time to absorb the scenery she found herself in.
The fluffy, adorable, and saccharine scenery she found herself in, filled with adorable house pets and barnyard life of all sorts of ilks.
Rui Yashio sighed in thinly veiled irritation, as she watched the drummer (and secret object of her affections) frantically searching for the remaining three bandmates, to no avail, for she seemed to be the only person who actually got the memo to show up, despite the fact that Touko invited all of Morfonica to congregate together for a little "hang-out".
She could have been at home, practicing hard for the upcoming Morfonica concert. But sadly, it appeared Rui's life seems determined to constantly throw undeserved curveballs in her otherwise secure life, ever since the gyaru guitarist had the bright idea to recruit the violinist into Morfonica.
Which is how Rui and Tsukushi ended up alone in a petting zoo together.
After calming down from her little tizzy (no doubt, because of the stares she was getting), Tsukushi decided to turn to Rui and flash one of her usual false-bravado-filled smirks.
Tsukushi: (confidently) Not to worry, Rui-san! I'm sure that Touko-chan and the others must be around her somewhere! In the meantime, shall we explore the petting zoo together? I come here all the time with my little siblings, so I know this place like the back of my hand!
After internally weighting her decisions, one action prevailed in her mind.
Rui: (nodding slightly) Very well, Futaba-san. Lead the way.
Rui internally flagellated herself for going by her emotions yet again. She has nary a clue as to why her normally logical mind would suddenly default to her usually well-suppressed emotional side whenever she's around the diminutive drum major. Ever since the drummer vented to Rui about her hamster-like features, Rui wasn't able to stop picturing Tsukushi as a cute little fluffball.
And her emotions and facial blood levels seem to go into overdrive when the drummer grabs one of her hands and excitedly speedwalks towards one of the exhibits.
Futaba: (excitedly) I've heard that they've got a brand-new exhibit that opened up!
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But little did the drummer and violinist know, Touko is on the other side of the town, grinning to herself, while Nanami and Mashiro are tailing behind her. For you see, Touko has only the most brilliant plan in mind!
She may not be the most emotionally-sensitive of the bunch, but she is a self-proclaimed expert when it comes to romantic feelings for others. And she can very easily tell that big scary Yashio-sensei has a secret soft spot for tiny little Fuusuke, and maybe something beyond that!
So her game plan is to get the two dark-haired girls together (hopefully, by the end of the day) and maybe move on to her remaining two companions.
Mashiro's timid and dulcet tone snapped Touko out of her devious plotting.
Mashiro: (hesitant) Uh...Touko-chan. Are you sure it's a good idea to just...ditch them like that? I just feel guilty leaving them alone...
Touko: (confidently) C'mon, Shiro! What could possibly go wrong? I have a great sense for these types of things!
Mashiro: (confused, but no less nervous) But...why the petting zoo? Do either of them even like animals?
Turning over to face the pale-haired girl and shoving her cell phone into the other girl's face, Touko gasped incredulously.
Touko: (shocked and incredulous) WHAT?! Are you kidding?! Check out these social media pics!
Mashiro looked at the phone screen in front of her, and could see a couple of pictures of girls that bring back memories of the sakura party.
In the first picture, she could recognize the stoic vocalist of Roselia and the geeky drummer of Pastel*Palettes, each with a cat in their lap and being surrounded by even more cats. While Maya does seem like the type of person who would enjoy the company of a fluffy kitty, Mashiro was shocked to see the normally harsh glare of the vocalist glazed over and her face flushed with an indescribable emotion, both from the exposure to the adorable felines and the kiss on the cheek from Maya.
In the second picture, Mashiro instantly called back to Roselia and Pastel*Palettes, but the picture is of their guitarist and their bassist respectfully, both of whom are known for their business-like composure, with a golden retriever peeking in from the left. And yet in the picture, Sayo's normally bitter face is stretched out into a stupid grin, as the bluenette guitarist is getting licked on her left cheek by the golden retriever and getting kissed on her right cheek by the blonde bassist.
And in the third and final picture, Mashiro recognized the girl on the left as Poppin' Party's Tae Hanazono, but was unable to place the name of the tall ravenette on her right, until Mashiro read the comments below, and learned that her name was Rei. True to her main non-music-related passion, Tae and her girlfriend were surrounded by small and fluffy bunnies and were out-right frenching, causing Mashiro to blush slightly. In the background, Mashiro could also see a tall girl with short blond hair and a nasty glare getting swarmed by a bunch of small fluffy animals, but based on her look of sheer bliss, the furry critters clearly mean no harm to the girl.
Nanami: (surprised) Woah! I never knew petting zoos were so popular and normal these days!~
Touko: (smirking) No kidding, Nanami-chan! Petting zoos are practically dating hot spots these days, especially for these scary-looking gals! Underneath that perma-frown, I bet Yashio-sensei really loves cute and fluffy animals!
Mashiro and Nanami both tried their best to picture the cleanly and youthless Rui Yashio petting a cat or getting licked on the face by a big and friendly mutt, the latter of which proving to be a humorous picture for Nanami, for she stifled a couple of awkward giggles. Mashiro couldn't help put purse her lips in intrigue, wondering if there could potentially be a more human side to the stiff and almost robotic Rui that she hasn't even thought about before.
Touko: (brandishing her phone) Now if you excuse me, romance awaits me!
And then suddenly, without any warning or explication for her actions, Touko put her track club skills to good use and sprinted away, leaving Mashiro and Nanami in the dust, by the time the two girls managed to snap out of their daydreams.
Mashiro: (shocked) T-Touko-chan?!....What just happened?
Nanami: (shrugging) Beats me. But, I have a feeling Touko-chan would show up with a couple of more pictures on her camera roll!~ Oh! In the mean time, want to grab something to eat?
Looking to where Nanami is gesturing, Mashiro noticed that they stopped right by the local fast food place. Mashiro hesitates for a bit, before Nanami puts a reassuring hand on the light-haired girl's shoulder, as if her genius-level intellect allowed her to telepathically predict her friend's sorrow.
Nanami: (reassuringly) Oh, no worries, Shiro-chan! I'll ask them to take the pickles out of yours!~
Thanking her good friend with an adorable blush on her face, Mashiro entered into the restaurant with Nanami hand-in-hand, as she let her worries slowly melt away.
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By the time Tsukushi stopped speed walking and tugging the violinist by the arm, Rui's dull purple eyes examine the exhibit in front of her, as she slowly but surely walked forward.
Standing on top of a standard wooden desk with metal legs, was a large terrarium that had wood shavings on the bottom, a blue drinking bottle on the left and a bright red exercise wheel on the opposite side. And inside the terrarium were several unidentifiable balls of fur, that Rui later learned were hamsters, based on the large flashy sign over the terrarium that read "COME SEE OUR BRAND NEW EXHIBIT! HAMSTERRARIUM!".
Staring at all of the fluffballs of assorted colors preforming their clumsy and foolish antics, Rui was unable to fight back a slight blush at the sheer cuteness of the tiny animals, and it's only because of her height that Tsukushi remained oblivious to Rui's sudden ruddiness.
Tsukushi: (smiling) Okay then, Rui-san! Please hold your hands out!
With her usual stone-hearted judgement eroded by the presence of the hamsters and the hamster-like girl, Rui quickly obliged to Tsukushi's command, much to the drummer's shock. When Rui felt a fuzzy and warm weight in her hands, Rui looked down at the hamster that Tsukushi handed her, and slightly ran her long fingers through the tiny mammal's fur, internally enjoying the soft texture of the fur and the sheer cuteness of the small rodent looking back at her.
Tsukushi: (grinning earnestly) So, how do you like the hamster I picked out for you?
With the hamster's black fur, large and eager eyes, and an adorable curved smile, Rui can't help but think of the clumsy yet earnest drummer, when staring at the adorable hamster, and her eyes widened as her cheeks flushed even brighter. And unlike the previous times, it seems that Tsukushi noticed Rui's eyes darting back and forth between her and the hamster and the dazed look on Rui's face.
Rui: (dazed slightly) Yes....it is satisfactory....
Tsukushi: (slowly putting two and two together) Wait a second! Rui-san?
Rui internally kicked herself for letting her secret soft spot for both the hamsters and her secret crush get discovered by the object of her affections herself. She luckily has enough self-control to not just take off and bolt away like some love-struck loon, but not enough self-control to fight back her flushed face and her rapidly opening and closing mouth.
Tsukushi: (incredulous) You don't think I look like a hamster, do you?!
The taller girl slightly sighed, glad that Tsukushi didn't read her ruddied expression, and picked up on the whirlwind of emotions that Rui is feeling in both her brain and her heart. But the puffy cheeks from a now frustrated Tsukushi only served to further the resemblance to the hamster in Rui's hands. But she tried her best to compose herself, and save face in front of the class representative, while still holding and petting the hamster
Rui: (attempting to compose herself) We've been through this, Futaba-san. Your resemblance to a hamster is rudimentary, at best.
Luckily, Tsukushi seemed to buy her momentarialy-fabricated composure, for her face lightened up and the smile on her face returned.
Tsukushi: (confidently) I know, right? I may be small, but someone as diligent as me would more likely be a carnivore of sorts!
Tsukushi: (playfully) Roar!
With her mind melted from the sheer cuteness of the class representative, one thing ended up being very clear in the violinist's mind:
Rui: (internally) I love her...
The loud and bright flash of a phone's camera snaps Rui out of her lovestruck daze, and she could pick up Touko's mischievous giggles. Rui currently planning on giving Touko a strict lecture and extra practice time (assuming that Rui could ever find her), but maybe she could go to the self-proclaimed "Master Matchmaker" for help dealing with these foreign emotions.