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A boy was crying in his room, his dirty school uniform pressed against his face. Bad people harassed him every day, making his self-esteem and will to live disappear with each passing moment. He hugged a stuffed pig named "Amanda," who had been present in his moments of joy, sadness, anger, fear, and now was witnessing his depression and isolation.
"Amanda... I wish... you were human..." The boy said between sobs, barely able to pronounce the words. Amanda had never witnessed this before; he spoke in a farewell tone, and she was afraid the boy would do something.
And then something shone inside her, a bright golden light, as if a wish had been made.
Amanda will always be with you, Jyushi.
Jyushi finally arrives at his hotel and throws himself onto the bed, Amanda in his arms. He lets out a relieved sigh, taking off his heavy clothes and grabbing his makeup remover from his bag. "Amanda, we're finally here!" Jyushi is on tour; he'll be performing in Ikebukuro in a few days. But he had to arrive in the city earlier, since his friends wanted to spend days looking at manga or music CDs to take home.
Jyushi finally removes his makeup, tying his hair in a low bun and pinning back his bangs, turning around and looking at the little pig sitting on his bed. "Amanda, I'll be right back! Then we can go out in the city, just me... and you." Jyushi furrows his brow slightly, letting his thoughts take over. "Sometimes I wish you were human... But let's leave that aside! I'm going to take a shower." He gets up and enters the small bathroom.
Then, the same light from years ago begins to reflect off the little plush toy's body, the same golden light, which now fully takes the shape of the plush toy, increasing in size and revealing a human body. Amanda was sitting on the hotel bed, realizing she could move. She looked at her hands, which were previously paws with red fingers and gloves, seeing her feet also covered by something resembling a red shoe. Her arms and legs were covered by sleeves and wide pants in a darker shade of yellow, and they could see that they had a more resistant woolen swimsuit and a clown collar that tightened around her neck, but it was clear that it was green.
They then tries to stand up, taking slow, clumsy steps as if learning to walk. Approaching a mirror and looking at her reflection, they notices details she hadn't seen before: them hair in two large braids, a curled demon tail (to imitate a pig's), ears, a V-shaped fringe that revealed them pale makeup with yellow eyeshadow. They also sees a drop next to one of them eyes and them jester's hat. They turns around, also noticing wings that weren't in them original model, but they don't work at the moment. Them tries to make a sound, but can't.
But soon she hears the sound of a door creaking slowly.
They looks towards the sound and sees Jyushi, still much taller than Amanda, looking perplexed, wearing only a bathrobe. The two stare at each other, unsure what to do, until Jyushi screams, startling Amanda.
"AAAAAAAH!!! W- WHO ARE YOU???"
Amanda approaches, trying to signal for him to calm down, making a stuffed animal sound. Jyushi looks, still frightened, at Amanda who is using sign language to communicate with him.
"Jyushi! It's me, A-M-A-N-D-A."
Jyushi is now confused; the person really seemed to be dressed up as Amanda normally is, even with her tail wagging and making the plush sound that Amanda usually makes. He analyzes the smaller person more, also noticing that the plush pig has disappeared from his bed, making him even more suspicious. "How can I trust you?" Amanda thinks for a moment, remembering unique moments that only Jyushi and Amanda remember.
"Well, there are many things I can say about you. Like the way your grandma handed me over to you: You were a child, your grandma ended up making me and giving me to you as a "best friend," even sewing me up when the bullies tore me, or cleaning me when they dirtied me. Ooooou, that you like the middle brother from that Ikebukuro division—"
"ENOUGH, ENOUGH!!! Y-You really are Amanda!" Jyushi is embarrassed, putting his hand to his face; nobody knows these details except Amanda. He then stares at them, happy that they is finally human. "But... You really are Amanda! How did this happen? Oh, so many questions!" Jyushi exclaims, hugging the smaller person. It's funny that Amanda only reaches Jyushi's diaphragm. Amanda then pushes Jyushi away, pointing to his robe, reminding him that he's practically naked. "Ah! Hehe... I'm sorry... I'll get dressed."
"So... Just this one more thing and... Done! Amanda, what did you think?" Jyushi further enhanced Amanda's makeup and combed her hair. He looked at himself in the mirror, smiling and hugging Jyushi, who found the action very cute.
"We should visit the city, what do you think?" Jyushi makes an exaggeratedly surprised expression, remembering something he brought him. "Amanda!!! You reminded me of something!" Jyushi grabs his bag and starts rummaging through it to look for something. Amanda comes closer, trying to figure out what he's looking for, until he stands up and reveals a map of Ikebukuro. He holds up the paper as if it were a prize. Amanda then claps her hands slightly, also surprised by the map. "Here are all the points of interest in Ikebukuro! One of my bandmates gave it to me in case I need it, I think it will be very useful now." Amanda nods, getting closer to see where they can go for a walk.
"Look! This is a manga store! Well... Where are we again?" Jyushi points, trying to center his position on the hotel he's staying at. Amanda searches with him, and they both find the place at the same time, pointing to the hotel together. It was so cute how Amanda had such a sweet and gentle personality as Jyushi, as if they had absorbed his mannerisms, looks, opinions, and expressions. Like two siblings, one younger and one older, raised by their grandmother.
"Okay, we should go now so it doesn't get late!" Amanda gestures excitedly. Jyushi agrees, grabbing his bag and room keys. "You're right! Let's go! But first, I'll put warmer clothes on you. It's very cold!" Jyushi takes a sweatshirt and a scarf from his suitcase, dressing Amanda warmly. "All set! Let's go."
Jyushi grabs the keys and the two eagerly leave the room, their joy so synchronized that they didn't even realize they were holding hands to keep up. Finally reaching the street, they start walking, noticing that it was nearing the end of the afternoon. "How about we see the late afternoon in Ikebukuro?" Amanda nods, finally beginning her exploration of the district.
They browsed shops, took photos, and communicated with immense happiness on their faces. Their hands are full of bags with various things like manga, makeup, accessories, and clothes, always following the otaku theme.
Jyushi then saw an anime stand shop, several figures caught his attention, making him smile and pull Amanda to the shop, who agreed to go without complaint.
"Amanda! Let's see if there's something here that I really want to give Jiro as a gift!" Amanda agreed, entering the shop and finding a group of teenagers in school uniforms gathered around a table. Jyushi was startled; he didn't know how the people of Ikebukuro would react to him wearing extravagant clothes. Amanda noticed his insecurity, nudging him and making something clear.
"Jyushi, remember that no one should dictate who you are. Whatever they think, they don't know you and have no right to judge you by your appearance. Just do your thing and let's go."
Jyushi nodded, holding Amanda's hand, gathering courage, and walking straight past the group of teenagers.
"Wait, is that Jyushi Aimono?!"
Jyushi hears a female voice near him, slowly turns to the group of teenagers until he sees three shy girls below his field of vision, their cell phones already set to the camera. Amanda quickly understands what's happening: fans meeting their idol.
Jyushi immediately smiles, striking a dramatic pose and completely changing his mood. Amanda sees the taller boy's action and imitates him, in her own way.
"Kwahahaha! Yes, it's me! Aimono Jyushi himself, blessed by the moon, will give Ikebukuro a moonlit bath! That's my mission, and right now, I came here today to buy a special gift for a special person! But obviously, I can fulfill whatever you want, my followers!"
"Hey Jyushi! I can help you."
Jyushi recognizes the voice, looking directly towards where it's coming from, within the circle of teenagers, it's Yamada Jiro. What's happening is a simple beyblade tournament, where his beyblade was strangely similar to its owner. Jyushi despairs, since the gift is for Jiro. "J-Jiro-kun! I didn't expect to find you here..."
"Hahaha! I was smashing a certain idiot with my son, Superjirosensei!" Jiro raises his beyblade, revealing marks and scratches clearly from beatings. The "idiot" Jiro refers to is his classmate, who is stressed from the battle. "You're the idiot! This is a weapon." Jiro laughs at his classmate's complaint, sticking his tongue out. "It's not my problem that you're awful!" Jyushi finds the scene adorable, unable to contain a slight blush on his cheek.
On the other hand, a small court jester is drawn directly to the toys, revealing himself (since no one could see him because of his height) and heading towards the two guys, who are suspicious of the close distance he is at. He then turns to Jiro, making a sign, which he doesn't understand at first.
"Eh... Calm down. Can you do it slower? I'm not good at sign language, but I've been practicing." Amanda blinks twice, smiling sweetly, and approaches Jiro. "I understand what you're saying, I hear you, I just can't speak. I want to try playing this, can I?" Jiro keeps dictating what he wanted to say aloud, until he lets out a loud, exaggerated sigh. "AAAAH! Of course! Well, I'll teach you how to play."
Jyushi freezes at the scene of the two of them; Jiro teaching Amanda to play a game he's always been interested in was something quite magical. He is then interrupted by the three girls wanting his attention, and he gives them that attention, but always keeping an eye on what the most precious things in his life are doing. Until...
"WAAAH! H-HOW!?" Jiro and Amanda high-five; what happened was that they teamed up to stop Jiro's other friend in the Beyblade. The group around them bursts into shouts, unable to believe that a newcomer managed to beat the boy. The laughter and celebration grow louder and louder as Amanda manages to make funny faces to tease the other boy.
Jyushi decided to look for the gift alone, browsing the shelves and trying to remember which characters Jiro liked. "Hmm... Could it be Naruto? No... I remember Ichiro-san mentioning that he would give him one, so, Goku! No, no. He already has one... What character is this? "Asta"? I've never heard of him, would he like this?"
"Who are you looking for this for?" Jyushi shouts in fright, looking back and seeing Jiro leaning against a shelf full of geek figures that probably cost the price of a house. Jyushi is embarrassed, his hands trembling with fright, he tries to put the figure in his hands back in place, almost hitting it on the shelf. "A-ah... Jiro, you scared me!"
Jiro gives his famous mischievous smile, approaching and standing next to Jyushi, looking at the characters on the shelf. "Sorry for scaring me, your friend told me you were looking for a gift for someone, so I decided to help you." He widens his smile at the taller boy, who can't control the color of his cheeks. "Well... Uh... It's for a friend!" Jiro blinks twice. "Is it for Kuko? Or someone from your band? Or... Is it for my brother?" And... Well, he forgot that there are only the people from BAT, AKG, and BB who are truly his friends.
Jyushi's eyes widen, shaking his hands and denying everything he mentioned. "N-No! No, no... It's... Um..." Jyushi doesn't want to say anything to spoil the surprise, so he thinks about how to say it's for Jiro without saying it's for Jiro. "It's for a friend of mine, you probably don't know him, but he's really cool. While he can be a little impulsive, his true talent is helping whoever needs it, without question. He's so bright that his smile can brighten the life of anyone who talks to him for three minutes. A person as kind as him deserves this gift, doesn't he? He's also sporty, he loves soccer, I think he's one of the people who motivated me to exercise! And his looks... They attract so many people, especially me, he's... Amazing, my type."
Jyushi says the last sentence without realizing it, becoming even more embarrassed and putting his hand to his face. "P-Please ignore the last sentence! I didn't mean that—" He is interrupted by Jiro's laughter, a laugh so delightful that you can see her cheeks turning pink, he can't help but admire this scene. "My apologies, sorry. But that was really a sweet thing to say! I hope your friend likes the gift." Wait... Didn't he notice it was directed at him? This relieves Jyushi a little, but he's also sad that he didn't understand that the declaration was for him.
Jiro composes himself, rubbing one eye and turning his full attention back to Jyushi. "Well, if you want help choosing, tell me what he likes." Jyushi composes himself, taking one of his strands of hair and twirling it around his finger. "He has very similar tastes to yours, so I thought I'd base it on what you like!" Jiro is a little impressed, thinking about what the other might like.
"Well, I really like that figure over there, I'm even saving up to buy it, it's so beautiful... Well! Your friend will probably like this Tanjiro one!" Jyushi examines the figure that Jiro pointed out, realizing that it's of a character he doesn't know. "Excuse me, but... What's the concept of the figure you like?" Jiro turns around, happy with the question. "It's Chainsaw Man! Because it has more details, it's quite expensive... But I really want it, so I'm saving up for it!" Jyushi feels fulfilled seeing the price; it's expensive, but luckily he has much more than the amount he's displaying. "Well, I think I know which one I'll get, thank you Jiro!" Jyushi gives a sweet smile, which touches Jiro's heart. "Y-You're welcome! Well... I'll go back, my friends must be worried!"
Jyushi takes the figure that Jiro so longs for, taking him to pay, asking for special gift wrapping.
Amanda sticks her tongue out at Jiro's friend, who laughs harder and harder at the funny losses in the beyblade. Soon, Jyushi appears, drawing everyone's attention. "Hey, let's go." Amanda immediately gets up and heads towards Jyushi, then Jiro remembers something.
"Jyushi!" He exclaims to get the taller boy's attention. Slightly desperate, Jyushi looks at him, hiding his gift behind his back. He didn't want to give it at that moment... It turns out he wants to give it to express his love! But it will probably be in his house until the end of time. Jyushi Aimono doesn't know exactly how he'll do it, but he knows Amanda can help him. "Y-Yes?" He asks, trembling a little.
"I heard you're doing a show here in Ikebukuro. I didn't know until your friend told me about it! I really want to go." This triggers even greater anxiety in Jyushi, who now sets a new goal in his head: to impress Yamada. "Wah! I'd love to see you there! I-I can give you the ticket... Wait..." Jyushi turns his back and starts searching in his bag for a spare ticket, taking it out and handing it to Jiro with all the care in the world, he even bends down just to hand over the VIP ticket. "Here you go! I hope you enjoy our performance..." Amanda observes the situation, giving a mischievous smile, finding the action adorable.
Jiro laughs at his action, taking it and giving him a light pat on the shoulder. "Oh Jyushi, thank you very much!" He takes the ticket, putting it in his pants pocket.
The two say goodbye along with Jiro and Amanda's friends, and then Jyushi and Amanda leave the place.
Jyushi freaks out.
"WAAAH! A-AMANDA! DID HE NOTICE??? HE'S GOING TO MY SHOW!!! I NEED TO WEAR SOMETHING BETTER, DO MY HAIR BETTER, PUT ON BETTER MAKEUP! HELP ME!!!"
Amanda is startled by Jyushi's shouting, while the taller man hugs the court jester and shakes them, leaving them motionless and only then managing to give Jyushi light taps on the head. they feels them head wet, imagining that the taller man is crying.
Soon Jyushi pulls away, rubbing his eyes. "Amanda... Help me..." Amanda nods and tilts her head, making Jyushi then say what he wants. "I really want to do something magical since he's going, I want to change a little just to impress him, maybe if I change he'll fall in love with me." Jyushi believes that if he changes, Jiro will fall in love with him. His insecurity is that the younger boy will hate him if he confesses his feelings. Amanda raises her head, denying the request.
"Jyushi, he's not going to see a fake version of you, he's going to see you, Jyushi, 14th Moon. I support you dressing well or changing your hair, but remember what Kuko-san constantly tells you."
Jyushi sniffs aggressively, his makeup melting on his face. Amanda raises her hand to wipe the taller boy's face.
"You're right... But what do I do?" Amanda thinks for a moment, looking to the side and seeing an alternative store. They then drags Jyushi inside the store, time to go shopping!
Jiro enters the concert hall and is surprised by the goth-style people and the purplish lighting. He looks at the time and realizes he managed to arrive much earlier, going to the "VIP" section, which was very close to the stage. His wristband, indicating his spot, was fluorescent, like everyone else's.
Jiro looks at his clothes: a loose shirt from a team he supports, his plaid sweatshirt usually tied around his waist, and baggy pants, with his cap turned backward, wearing old red Converse sneakers.
Everyone there is excessively stylish; he's the only one with a completely different style. The places you see someone like that on the street change when you attend a visual kei concert, and there are people who look like they just stepped out of a vampire romance novel.
Jiro is startled; the already dim lights quickly go out. He sees people looking directly at the stage, anticipating what might happen. He also observes, noticing a thick smoke rising.
"Hello to all followers of the great moon! May it bless you tonight and make this moment magical! I, Aimono Jyushi, will bring you the power and magic that it has bestowed upon me."
The crowd goes wild. Jiro doesn't understand a word being said, only staring at the stage and observing silhouettes emerging from the smoke. He then sees Jyushi accompanied by Amanda and his bandmates, paying closer attention and noticing a strange heat rising through his body.
Jyushi's full outfit is revealed. Wearing a beret cap with chains, his makeup was pale and striking, with sharp eyes due to the eyeliner, also imitating a clown's streak, his mouth with black lipstick highlights his white teeth. Going down, a choker full of chains covered his shoulders to his chest along with a black shirt from an old visual kei band containing holes that reveal another underneath with high sleeves that had pink and black stripes.
His legs were covered by a black skirt with pink ribbons that went down to his feet, and you could see the remains of a black platform boot that increased his height. In addition to accessories such as the spiked belts and his piercings, turning him around, you can see a torn ribbon holding half of his hair.
Jiro is enchanted.
Jiro can't explain this feeling, his world stops when he sees Jyushi like that, so angelic, so... Unique.... What is this? Is this "Moon" thing that "blessed" him having an "effect"? What is this?
He can only hear two things, the stage and the audience adoring the person he's falling for. He wanted to hear his thoughts, but it was impossible; he felt that what he already suspected had finally become reality.
He likes Jyushi. Not just for his looks, but for everything about the older man. When he saw Jyushi earlier, he tried to be as nice as possible, but he realized that his longing to be closer to him was growing more and more. He put his friends aside just to feel a little of Jyushi's presence, but he didn't want to bother him, failing miserably because of his jealousy after he mentioned this "friend" that Jiro doesn't even suspect is Jiro himself.
There she was, looking at him, everything around her fading as she admired Jyushi. He was the closest thing to the overwhelming love he felt without knowing the whole truth. The more he tried to think about it, the more obvious his feelings became to him, and how foolish he was for not understanding them as soon as they began to blossom.
He should have realized this at least since he handed over the ticket. After Jyushi left, he was so happy that his friends had to restrain themselves so he wouldn't jump and fall on something. He's really so slow to notice things like that that now he understands why Saburo always said that "he didn't even understand his own feelings."
Jiro then realizes that it's already the last song, damn it. He hadn't paid attention to anything, but something catches his eye: Jyushi is looking at him, he's singing Akuma No Hana while observing Jiro, as if the song were directly for him. Amanda observes the scene, they was on bass, approaching a little to observe the scene and finally realizing that Jyushi's objective was accomplished, to mess with Jiro, to charm Jiro.
Finally the last string is played, ending the show with everyone shouting, satisfied, Jiro feels as if nothing can get him out of that situation.
"Hey, are you Jiro Yamada?"
Jiro wakes up, looking to the side and seeing a person he clearly doesn't know, he thought it was some kind of employee who came to deliver something to him. "Yes, that's me."
"Our vocalist asked you to follow me."
Jiro feels his heart race; he hadn't expected Jyushi to actually want him there (which makes no sense, since Jyushi invited him), so he follows the assistant. Passing through a long corridor until reaching a dressing room, opening the door, Jiro can find the gothic angel who captivated him.
"J-Jiro! Hello!" Jyushi was sitting while holding a black box. He stands up, taking the box with him. "Hello Jyushi! Did something happen?" Jiro feels his cheeks burn. He tries to give his best smile while scratching the back of his neck and adjusting his cap.
Jyushi then takes a deep breath, bowing and showing his black box towards Jiro. "I'm so glad you came today! Please accept my gift; it's something thoughtfully prepared!"
Jiro freezes for a moment, his face turning even redder as if he's lost his breath. He accepts the gift, picking up the box but accidentally grabbing Jyushi's hand, which makes him raise his face aggressively, showing that his pale makeup and black eyes couldn't hide his blush and the tears that were forming.
Jiro lets out a relaxed laugh. "Hahaha! Thank you so much, Jyushi, I'll open it as soon as I get home." Jiro takes the gift completely, looking at the time and realizing it was getting late. "Anyway... I have to go, I loved your performance today! I hope you can have more opportunities in the future so I can go. Thank you so much!" Then Jiro turns to leave.
Wait, that's all?
Jyushi stops in time, looking to the side and seeing Amanda glancing quickly at Jyushi and Jiro, as if Jyushi knew exactly what Amanda was trying to say.
"Jiro-kun!" As Jiro turns to look, Jyushi pulls Jiro's arm closer, landing a kiss on the younger boy's cheek, leaving him speechless. Jiro freezes once more, placing his hand on his cheek to understand what happened, looking at Jyushi, who thinks that the other probably hated it.
"... I-I'm sorry! That wasn't my intention and-" Jiro replies, giving Jyushi a kiss on the cheek. "T-Thank you so much for the affection."
Jyushi blushes more and more, giving a small smile. "Haha!... I'm the one who should thank you for coming today." The two finally say goodbye and Jiro leaves. When the door closes, Jyushi looks to the side and sees Amanda laughing softly, which makes Jyushi almost want to cry again.
"A-Amanda! Don't laugh..." They gets close to Jyushi, calming down a little. "I'm sorry Jyushi, I couldn't stop laughing, you two are so cute together!" Jyushi puts his hand on his face "Waaah! H-he gave me a kiss on the cheek!" Amanda quickly stands on tiptoe to remove Jyushi's hand from his face "Well, if he had that reaction, Jiro was happy with your kiss."
Jyushi looks at Amanda, who gives a radiant smile. He calms down, holding Amanda's hand. "You're right... I hope he likes the gift!" Amanda hugs Jyushi, indicating comfort on her part. "He will, I'm sure of it."
Jyushi returns the hug, feeling something warm warm his heart. A bright light illuminates his face, then he feels that he is hugging some kind of cloth... Amanda has returned to normal. Jyushi holds her tightly, staring at her pig-like snout and button eyes.
"Thank you, Amanda! You were the best friend today." Jyushi puts Amanda in his bag, leaving for his hotel.
Jiro arrives home, quickly sitting on his sofa, hugging the present and bursting with happiness. "KIIII! He gave me a present and a kiss! Ahah!!! Ahahaha!"
"Who?"
Jiro jumps off the sofa, noticing that Ichiro was awake in the hallway with a cup of coffee and his usual pajamas. Jiro awkwardly stares at his feet with a shy smile.
Ichiro approaches and sees something on Jiro's face. "Jiro, it's very late... I didn't expect you to arrive now." Jiro looks at him again, hugging the present even tighter. "Aniki, I'm sorry, I didn't expect to arrive so late either. But, look what Jyushi-san gave me!"
This catches Ichiro's attention, so the two sit on the sofa and Jiro unwraps the present and freezes.
"What... WHAT!?" Ichiro is startled. "Jiro! Saburo is sleeping..." Jiro wants to cry at that moment when he sees the gift; it was exactly what he told Jyushi he wanted! "I'm sorry, Aniki... But... He gave me exactly what I wanted!"
"Well, that means he likes you a lot, doesn't it?" And that makes Jiro think of something... Jyushi's description of his friend.
Jiro falls backward.
"Jiro!?... Jiro???" Ichiro starts shaking his brother. "Hey! Jiro!? Are you okay?"
Jiro hugs his older brother tightly. "I think I'm weak... He admitted to my face that he thinks I'm amazing, empathetic, and cool... And I didn't realize..." Ichiro blinks twice, starting to laugh a little loudly, but returning the hug. "Hahaha! Well, at least you know now how he feels..."