Episode Sixteen

Searching for ‘Charles, Sleeping Beauty’ brought up the fairy tale title first.
It was the famous ‘Sleeping Beauty’.
Thinking it might be useful, I skimmed through the article.
Charles was the author’s name; his full name seemed to be Charles Perrault.
There are two versions of ‘Sleeping Beauty’: one written by the Brothers Grimm, famous for their fairy tales, and one by Charles Perrault. It seems each has a different title. The Grimm version is ‘The Briar Rose’, while Charles’ version is ‘Sleeping Beauty’.
Now that you mention it, I do recognise both titles. Incidentally, I hear the original story for a certain Disney film is Charles’ version.
That said, the basic plot of both is largely the same.
　Being so well-known, most people will likely have encountered it in a picture book or similar.
Here’s the tale.
Once upon a time, a beautiful princess was born to a king and queen of a certain kingdom.
However, the princess would fall under a sleeping curse cast by a witch who resented not being invited to the celebration.

──When she turns fifteen, your daughter shall prick her finger on a spinning wheel’s spindle and fall into an eternal sleep!

　The king tried desperately to avert the curse, even burning every spinning wheel in the kingdom. But the witch’s power was real, and eventually, true to the prophecy, the princess pricked her finger on a spinning wheel needle.
As the princess fell into an unending sleep, whether by the witch’s magic or some other force, her castle became overgrown with thorns, keeping everyone away.
Then a prince arrived, and with his kiss, the princess awoke, that’s the story.
　There seem to be more intricate details to the plot, actually.
Or rather, fairy tales, you think you know them, but you really don’t.
I ended up reading the article thoroughly, but this isn’t the information I wanted.
Guess I’ll just have to ask…
I opened the chat room with Momono-chan and typed a message.

‘Sorry for the sudden message on your day off. What was that “Charles” you mentioned before?’

The ‘read’ notification appeared almost immediately, followed by an instant reply.

‘So you are interested after all⁉︎’
‘“Charles” is an idol group!’

‘Idol…?’

The word I muttered made Ibara freeze.

‘S-Shigure-san? Did you just say something?’

Ignoring her for now, I fired a question into the chat room.

‘So, is there a girl in Charles who’s called “Princess Ibara”?’

The reply came in seconds.

‘How do you know that?! She was my favourite! She graduated though (cries)’
‘She’s the one in charge of green! Her face is the cutest ever, so look at her! It’ll burn into your retinas!’

An image was posted in the chat room.
　I had expected it based on the flow of the conversation, but I still found myself gasping.
A glittering idol outfit, based on a school uniform but mixed with military and gothic lolita elements.
A moss green scarf tie accented with pink roses.
A flawless smile and sparkling eyes. A palm held out to the audience.
　The idol on the screen overlapped with the girl holding a crepe right in front of me.

“Ibara, you can’t possibly be serious—”

“No.”

Her lips were covered by her index finger.
Ibara, her expression stiff, indicated the seat next to us with her gaze.
A couple of high school age sitting next to us were glancing over at us.

“Not here. Let’s change location. Shigure-san’s place, alright?”

I nodded.
There was no choice.

†

We moved to the station platform and rode the train in silence.
Even then, messages kept flying in from Momono-chan, who was (probably) getting more and more excited.
About the idol group, “Charles”.

Charles.
The official name is French: “Charles”.

The unit name is apparently derived from Charles Perrault, the French poet and fairy tale writer.
They debuted as agency-affiliated idols the year before last, apparently gaining fervent fans through their fairy tale-themed concept and performances.
　Although it’s difficult to call them mainstream, they have established a solid position as a unique idol group thanks to their easy-to-understand concept, the outstanding visuals of each member, and their style of carefully cultivating their worldview across various media.
There were five members at the time of their formation.
Their costumes and live performances are based on different fairy tales.
Little Red Riding Hood.
Puss in Boots.
Bluebeard.
Cinderella.
And Sleeping Beauty.
Shinomori Ibara.
The princess in charge of green, who made a sudden retirement (graduation?) two months ago.

She, who had shone brilliantly on screen, now leaned her shoulder against the train door, her eyelids half-lowered in languor.
A sense of melancholy hung over her entire body.
　The dusk-coloured evening sun poured in through the train window.

The train arrived at the station.
We passed in front of Sereno and headed straight for my house. There was no conversation during that time, only an awkward silence floating around us.
We arrived at the house, took off our shoes, and sat down across the dining table from each other.
Just then, Ibara sat down in seiza.

“I’m sorry for keeping it a secret.”

“Eh? No, it’s nothing really—”

There’s no need to be so formal.
It’s not like I’m angry or anything.
I was just… surprised.

“…Ibara, you were an idol, weren’t you?”

“I was. I’ve graduated now.”

“Ohhh…”

　I stared intently at the idol’s face once more.
Well now, come to think of it, it makes sense. She’s good-looking.
Her lack of financial hardship probably meant she was receiving a salary from the agency.
I could vaguely guess why she lived with Aki-san. I’m not too familiar with it, but if you’re pursuing entertainment work, you probably have to live in Tokyo. In that case, depending on your parents’ jobs, you’d either live alone or rely on family connections.

“Hoo…”

Staring intently.

“What is it, Shigure-san?”

“Ah, sorry. It’s just my first time seeing a live idol.”

“But we’ve been together this whole time. We even sleep in the same bed, for goodness’ sake.”

“Oh, right.”

　So, I thought I was semi-cohabiting and sharing a bed with a high school girl, but apparently I was semi-cohabiting and sharing a bed with a former idol high school girl.
Good heavens. I feel like my guilt has increased by about fifty percent. It seems there’ll soon be no room for leniency.
That aside, there’s one thing I need to confirm.

“Is it alright if I ask why you kept it a secret?”

“…Well…”

　She mumbled, her words muffled.
Was there some reason it was difficult to say?
I let my imagination run a little wild, then it hit me.
Idol. Sudden retirement. The unknown darkness of the entertainment world.
I panicked.

“It’s… it’s fine! If you don’t want to say, I won’t force you—”

“I thought… you might abandon me.”

“…Eh?”

“You’re already dealing with a troublesome high school girl with insomnia, and if you found out I was a former idol too, it’d be twice the hassle.”

She clenched her fists tightly on her lap, words coming out in a groan.

“Anyway, girls who do idol stuff, me included, are all full of self-importance, clingy, and prone to dependency – loads of them are a pain. It’d be the cube of that. A triple whammy.”

“I-Ibara?”

“Well, Shigure-san doesn’t seem interested in that sort of thing at all, so I thought, ‘Yay, lucky! I can keep it hidden for as long as possible!’”

“You thought that…”

“It’s out.”

“Yes, it is.”

“It’s out. Aaaah!” Ibara clutched her head.
This, too, was a side of Shinomori Ibara that Shigure had never seen since they met.