oddsandends | 62nd ♫ | don't blame me, i didn't have a clue

[ Luckily, there's a canon idol AU, so as we know, ]

The unattainability is part of the appeal ♡

Ooh, are you really thinking about it?
If you really want to know, I've been told my singing is quite good.

[ Honestly, her biggest hurdle here is learning to keep up the cute idol act while she's dueling. It's hard to contain her natural inclination to be a hammy anime villain when she knows she's gotten the better of someone with those "horrifyingly frustrating decks" of hers. ]

Edited 2019-07-25 17:26 (UTC)

You understand you'd have to be themed like a BEWD. Company mascot and all that.
Plus, depending on the kind of personality we could concoct for you

[He sends the text, leaving the last thought unfinished for a moment. Uncharacteristic. Would acting be...good for her? Or just kind of unsettling?]

you might be able to get away with more of an attitude. Yandere but less psychotic and murderous.

A fun consideration at any rate.

[But then again, consideration and a fun mental project might be all there is. He and Mokuba are used to putting on a show and being the center of attention and at times having a 'public' face. It could be a stray observation and some imagination. Could be something else. So he ends up adding:]

You ok?

[Shockingly straightforward and concerned of him, but he's trying to be more open in some respects.]

[ She had been prepared to joke back — My eyes already match, or I don't have the right face to pull off anything too edgy. But that small, frank addendum makes her stop, thumb hovering over the keypad.

There isn't a good answer to offer him. She doesn't know if she's ever okay, or if she ever will be. It's something she has been careful to keep to her close to her own chest, because what if that makes him feel like she's taken all his effort for granted? What if it makes him think it isn't worth trying anymore?

She starts to type something out, and then deletes it. She doesn't want him to not say how he feels, either, and maybe dodging the issue with a joke or some teasing will teach him not to be open with her in return. Finally, she answers him, the reply coming in only a single line of text. ]

Did I say something that makes you think I'm not?

[Yes, it's an unfair question given her constant state of not actually being okay but trying. And the question in return makes him frown. Was he reading too much into it? Stray observation and imagination after all?]

No. [That's honest. It wasn't something she said, not really.] The topic was curious.

[Like a quietly disdainful commentary on using a pretty, marketable face on every little thing. Or a suggestion that she might want to be more Like That. Or a hint that she might like more attention.]

Idols themselves are something of a saturated market, but I could always make a suggestion to marketing and see what ideas they can spin, if that would be fun.

I was just joking around, Seto.
Trying to trick you into saying I'm cute~

[ There's another pause before her next message, longer than what usually comes between her thoughts. ]

I don't know if it would be fun.
I don't know if it's something I would be good at.
I don't know if pretending to be happy makes someone happy.
...But, I do know that people would notice your ads doing something new ☆
You're a big part of the market. Any change will get people talking.

You don't have to trick me into saying my little sister is cute and adorable.

[He returns the image she shared to start, but with a soft glow shopped over it, and animated sparkles to boot.]

I won't suggest it with any seriousness. Call it a thought exercise.

I don't know if pretending helps. God knows I don't bother to pretend happiness. It might be nice to practice, but I think it would be better to learn what real happiness is.
I do know how difficult that is.

[For both of them, in their own ways. And for her in very particular. As a half-flippant afterthought:]

Performative emotions are exhausting.

[ He'd be happy to know that his answer makes her smile — genuinely, her cheeks reddening faintly as a fuzzy feeling settles into her chest. It's a silly reply, but its easy, familial affection draws her thoughts to all the ways he has accepted her. Maybe it's nothing like the love she held for Saber, but this sort of bond between brother and sister is new for her, too. ]

Maybe~
But...

This doesn't have anything to do with the idol thing.
Or it doesn't if you don't want it to.
But if I'm part of your family now, I should be part of the family business too, shouldn't I?
Otherwise, what am I reading all those boring business books for~

I hope they're still better than the drivel I have on my shelves.

[He's not surprised. And he doesn't necessarily object. Three people dealing with the company might normally get complicated, but she has a (relatively) stable head on her shoulders and would never attempt to drive KC into the ground. He's less sure that his shareholders and board will understand, but that's a future problem. Nepotism has never exactly been a problem, either, save for when rivals kidnap Mokuba.

Gods above, he might like to see someone try to kidnap Manaka, but the potentially bloody aftermath might be too much paperwork to be worth it.]

Could be you're reading them to try and steal someone else's business out from under them. Which is underhanded and in no way officially endorsed by Kaiba Corp. ["officially"]
Any area that particularly catches your interest? We can give you something minor to oversee to test how well you do.

Not in the slightest ☆
At least, not on the internal side.

That's why I've been thinking about PR, and that sort of thing.
I think I'd be good at it. Don't you? All I have to do is be cute and make people think I'm telling them what they want to hear, and you've already said that I'm cute~

[ Maybe she's simplifying the art of it, just a little bit. But she does know that her appearance puts her at a distinct advantage, so far as being charming goes. ]

Astonishingly cute, incredibly intelligent, preternaturally observant, shockingly cunning, horrifically manipulative.

Perfect for a job like that.

[He loves his little sister and will never be afraid to calls it likes he sees it. She understands.]

I can set something up with the current PR team and see how things get run, see how you might like it and go from there. I'd prefer to get you comfy running things behind the scenes before getting you behind a social media keyboard or in front of a camera first of course, but that's something to work up to.

[Baby steps, but steps he's sure will turn into giant leaps. He doesn't want to shake things up too much in case it ends up being something that doesn't hold her attention. Enough balls to juggle between public advertising and private sector publicity, he hopes it would, especially if it's her idea. Creative.

God, the idea of her actually being a face and voice for the company... He doesn't know if it's a concern. Who she is. Who she is now. The weight a name like his carries. It's a while before he raises the question, but eventually, another text goes through:]

How do you feel about being a Kaiba in public?

Hooray ♡
I'll be the brightest intern your PR team has ever had~

[ His suggestion is reasonable, and enough to satisfy her. As such, Manaka is happy to let the subject drop there. That he nonetheless follows up with weightier thought of his own doesn't surprise her, though; Manaka's own answer is immediate. ]

Why would I feel differently about it than being a Kaiba in private?
I abandoned being a Sajyou when I chose to return here with you.
That would be true whether or not any formal papers were signed.
Of course, I never had any future as a Sajyou anyway ♡

[ She dashes off that last line with a flippancy that doesn't suit the words. Another quick text follows, and then there's a longer pauses as she punches out a lengthier third. ]

Or do you mean the pressure to protect your image?
You already know that I have to put on a face for other people.
And that's not really any different than being a Sajyou, anyway. I would have been expected to put on a smiling face for the magi at the Clocktower, take a husband of good breeding, and avoid standing out too much.
I don't think I've ever told you what happens to those of us with abilities that stand out just a little too much, have I?
Not that it matters, of course. None of the Clocktower's enforcers would have been able to take me into custody.

[It's probably the kind of conversation they should have face to face, but, the idea's out there now. Of course it wouldn't matter to her, but--surely she understands? Or she can understand, with time. That there's a weight to carry. Maybe it's about him, yes, but it's also about her, about her image, about the fame and publicity and speculation and scandal that comes from being A Kaiba Sibling. Is that fair?]

I think there are things about each other and our worlds we haven't told each other than we probably should.

[It's careful. An invitation to continue the train of thought if she wants, and an invitation to set it aside for later if she wants.]

Maybe.
But the Mage's Association doesn't mean anything in this place.
I just mean to say that businessmen are an improvement. They're almost as bad as magi, but as far as I know, they don't usually try to have you killed when you're talented enough to be a threat to them.
Usually.

[ More than that, and this is a conversation better suited to having when she gets home. That's part of the reason for her flippant tone; if she acts like nothing she's saying has weight, it doesn't seem like she's revealed anything of importance. ]

Usually.

[Hard to get his wry intonation and smirk across via text. He's definitely been targeted to be killed for being talented enough to be a threat to other businesses, but he is well aware that he's an outlier and should not be counted.]

I know it's an exceptionally low bar to clear, but I'm still glad to be an improvement over crusty old bloodthirsty magi.

We can talk about the particulars at home.

[ Not to worry. She can imagine his voice as she reads his reply, and it brings another smile to her face. ]

Okay ☆
I'll be back in a little bit. I just wanted to take care of a little personal shopping.

62nd ♫ | don't blame me, i didn't have a clue

I've been murdergaming anyway so it's fine

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tbh just ignore this if you want, I just have a lot of feelings about them again!!!

SIBLING FEELS

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