Nao Okuda, this is what she would look like if she was in the K-ON! Anime.  I wish I could give credit to whoever drew this, but there is no signature and I don’t know where I found it.  But, I really love this image!

Last time, Azusa woke up in a hospital cured of her paralysis, but because of the overdose she now has damaged her short-term memory.  Jun still pledged to stay by her side no matter what happens, however her anger at Azusa’s attempted suicide has caused Jun to become strict and demands Azusa’s obedience to her as punishment for hurting her heart.

Now, Nao fights with her emotions over the loss of her unborn triplets, will she defeat her demons or remain trapped in the mysterious pair of songs which continue to play endlessly on a loop, in:

K-ON!!!!! “Beautiful World” Part 2.

PAST:

Junior year of High School…

Sumire looked to her opponents with her hands locked in fists as the three girls she would be fighting stood across from her wearing street clothes—who knew which school they went to. All Sumire knew was that her friend Nao was kneeling on the sidewalk bruised and beat-up; her lip was bleeding, the blue ribbon at her collar was untied on one side and her blue jacket was dirty—Sumire wouldn’t tolerate it.

“The dumb blond Gaijin is actually protecting the geek, are you serious? So Gaijin, do you think you can take all three of us?” One of the girls said.

Sumire looked at them, then down to Nao and then back to the girls, she pulled open the blue ribbon at her own collar and pulled it off so none of her opponents could grab it and use it against her, she then quickly took off her blue jacket and dropped it and the ribbon on the sidewalk and said, “I am Sumire Saitou, I was brought up for the sole purpose of serving, caring for and protecting Tsumugi Ojousama-San. I was taught to obey her, I was taught to cook for her and to clean—a perfect maid! However…I was also taught to protect her—and now I’ll protect my ‘sister’ Nao-Chan!”

Nao looked up at Sumire and said weakly, “Sumire-Chan, don’t, there are too many of them…its ok, I’ll be a good girl and do whatever they say, don’t get hurt…please Sumire.”

“You were my human shield once Nao-Chan–I don’t mind being called Gaijin, I know I was born in Japan and all I can really speak is Japanese; so what if my family was originally from Germany, I can take any words that these stupid people throw at me, but I won’t stand here and let anyone hurt you ever again Nao-Chan,” Sumire said.

“Shut this Gaijin up! Get her!” The leader of the three girls said and they ran in to attack Sumire who stood in front of Nao taking a few shots, but dishing out worse. Sumire said she was taught to protect Tsumugi…what she was doing to these bullies must have meant that she had a Black Belt or something close, because she was causing Nao to cringe as she attacked her assailants.

The only problem was…

Light Music Club, the next day…

“So, how long is Sumire suspended for?” Sawako asked as the girls of Nao’s band had gathered in the music room.

“Two weeks, the administration let her off easy because she was defending me—who knew those girls went here? They were expelled though, so in the end, it was all fair…for once,” Nao replied.

“I’m sorry that I didn’t watch out for you closer Nao-San, it is my duty as a senior to do so; who knew there was such disgraceful acts in this school?” Said a girl with a green bow tied at her collar and green and white indoor slippers on her feet.

“It’s OK Mariko-Senpai, I’m used to being bullied; I think I’ll always be a Kouhai even next year. I tested for this school because I heard that it was somewhat like a sisterhood; it was somewhere safe and I would meet good friends and be able to study without having to watch my back all the time. Last year I came in here covered with bruises and…” Nao was interrupted by Sawako who said, “You said books fell on you in the library! Someone beat you up!”

“Yes Miss Yamanaka…someone beat me up, I seem to attract bullies…I’m a klutz, but not to the extent that books would fall on me. I’m sorry that I hid the truth,” Nao replied.

“I could have helped you, bullying is not tolerated in this school! Nao-Chan, when ever you need help, you know who to come to; there are many of us who would do anything for you. Sumire proved it to you, and all of us, here, now; will always have your back, so never hesitate to ask for help when you need it,” Sawako said to everyone’s agreement.

A few days after “The Wakaba Girls” recorded their album…

Nao stood in the choir room—down the hall from the Light Music Club, with Sawako; her large green, black and silver headphones around her neck and her Roland G-707 strapped in front of her with the amp cable attached to a small VOX guitar amplifier and the pedal box synthesizer set up on the floor in front of her feet, she held her pick in her right hand and looked up at her former Sensei. Nao wore a pink and green track suit with the jacket zipped below her breasts with a pink tee underneath and a large patch on the left breast side that denoted a pseudo sports team. She pressed her red half glasses up the bridge of her nose and flung her shoulder length black hair from her face and waited for Sawako’s instructions.

“Nao, I hope you will forgive me for making jokes about your singing in the past. You have always come to me to continue to improve your musical skill. I gained your interest in using music creation software, taught you guitar when others would run away at the sight of my Metal past…now you want to learn to sing; and so you shall. Nao, I really love you, I’ve been alone so long, I could never find a husband and I really wanted a child and although I know you have a wonderful mother, I’ve always felt like you were a daughter to me, so Miss Okuda, lets start with what you want to sing, because you have a long way to go,” Sawako said.

Nao lifted a piece of paper from her work station where her laptop was set up and holding it in two hands with her pick still gripped in her right she handed it to Sawako who took it and looked it over.

“Oh…I see…you want to play this and sing it…” Sawako smiled at Nao’s choice and said, “Do you want to change the tune to make it your own, or do you want to copy it as much as possible? It is a Japanese song, so, you can’t screw it up by mispronouncing any of the lyrics—but, you also can speak perfect English, so there is nothing to worry about if it was an English song.”

“Yes ma’am, I want to keep it original, although there are 2 known versions, I believe that I can; with your training, keep the tune and tone the same or as close as possible to the original, I want to learn the guitar version; please Miss Yamanaka,” Nao replied.

Sawako smiled at Nao, she loved how she sounded so submissive when she spoke, it wasn’t right, but it would be ok because Nao was Nao and that was all that mattered.

“Nao-Chan, put your headphones on, and then jack them to the microphone I set up, this way you’ll be able to hear your voice. I will coach you and we will do it as long as it takes.” Sawako said.

“Yes Miss Yamanaka,” Nao replied tucking her pick into the pocket of her pants, she reached up and took hold of her headphones in her small hands and clamped them over her ears, she looked at Sawako who said, “Can you hear me still?” Nao replied, “Yes Miss Yamanaka.”

Sawako moved closer to Nao and began instructing her on how to relax her voice and how to breathe, she then had her perform the song in steps with her guitar and then to sing the part that lined up with the music.

Hours passed; retraining Nao to go from almost tone deaf to a gentle voice was a lot of work, but eventually each part began to line up.

It was now after nine at night and the school was going to close so Sawako called down to the night security and asked them if she and Nao could stay, he agreed with the senior member of the staff and just asked to be told when they were leaving. Sawako was thankful, and then instructed Nao to take a break.

After hours of wearing the tight, large headphones, Nao was relieved to take them off; she then placed her Roland in its case and reset her computer and pedal box back to the beginning of the song for when they were to start again.

“You are really good, like a pro Nao-Chan, you’ve come a very long way…training, practice, reading numerous books, trying and trying again and again until you got it. You spent multiple years with “The Wakaba Girls” after you got back together with them and let your own band go after you graduated from here. Believe it or not, all of you girls mean the world to me and I am so happy that I can see most of you still. The song you chose to learn is really nice, so I can understand why you want to sing it, it makes sense,” Sawako said as she set up a makeshift table and began removing a large Bento box and thermos of tea from a case; she never thought that she would be the one serving.

“Is it safe to assume that you ‘Wakaba Girls’ are going to add this song as a cover? One cover song won’t hurt anything Nao-Chan—have a seat and dig in, I promise its good—and are you also going to sing your own songs like ‘Answer’ while Azusa will sing the rest? She sounds cute singing ‘Over the Starlight.’ I think Azusa had a lot to do with your changes—wanting to sing…or, are the girls making fun of your Karaoke skills?” Sawako said and took a drink of tea.

“They are my friends, so they are just teasing me, but it does hurt a bit, so I want to be able to sing. I don’t know if we’ll cover the song though, I do write all of our music and I’d personally rather do the original songs, but, I really like this song and many others, especially a lot of English music…Is my costume ready yet Miss Yamanaka?” Nao asked.

“I really wouldn’t call it a costume, but you will look very kawaii, a ‘Wakaba Girls’ show needs to have an impact; and you are that impact, I promise, you’ll see it when its finished and ready for the show…thanks for wearing what I make for you, it actually means a lot to me,” Sawako said.

“As long as the outfit isn’t too weird or revealing I don’t mind—that and the fact that we design it together. I owe you a lot Miss Yamanaka and I’m forever grateful, I hope you know that,” Nao said.

“I do Miss Okuda, but you don’t owe me anything, I just want you to be happy; we’ll begin again soon and I will train you for as long as it takes before show time—I’m so proud of you and I’m so glad that you joined the Light Music Club back then,” Sawako said…

‘Me too, I have friends for life, I wasn’t alone anymore. This long, painful journey is almost over and even with all the heartache, it was worth it. I will never forget what you and Miss Nakano did for me,’ Nao said to herself remembering Sawako smiling…

Present:

“Sumire-Chan…Miss Yamanaka…Mariko…Mio…Ritsu…Azusa…Miss Maki…All of you and more, you are there for me, by my side, holding my hands as I walk out of the darkness and into the light. The pain, the loss…I closed my eyes and my ears, I didn’t want to accept help—like always…but, now I understand, there is a circle of people around me who love me and want to help me even in my darkest hour. I’ve hurt Miss Maki, my wife and lover, my partner forever…I wont hurt her anymore…and I won’t hurt myself for the sake of my girls…Keiko, Miho—we would have called you Miporin-Chan out of love…and Haruka…I love you, my little girls, I miss you, my little princesses, Father, please look after your grand daughters for me.”

“My beloved Maki, I’m so sorry…”

Nao opened her eyes, the room was a blur without her glasses on, but she looked to the clock on her nightstand and read the time in a whisper to after three AM. She looked over to Maki whom was in a deep sleep wearing a black concert tee and red panties with the sheet hardly covering her body.

Nao sat up slowly not wanting to wake Maki by her movements—these days, anything that Nao did was cause for concern so she was quiet. Nao pressed the ‘stop’ button on her MP3 player and removed her large green headphones that were just too tight for a woman her size to wear comfortably, but they had remained on for most of each day for months with a pair of songs blocking out her own cries brought on by the sudden miscarriage of her triplets.

Nao put her headphones on the bed with the MP3 player and slowly stood up and walked out of the room after lifting her glasses from the nightstand. Nao made her way to the guest bathroom so she could ensure that she didn’t wake Maki.

Nao lifted the lid and sat on the toilet; she put her glasses on and sat for a while as she luckily had a successful emptying, something that had been a concern of both Maki and Jun. After cleaning herself, Nao flushed and made her way to the studio stage on the lower floor of the large home and entered the sound proof, glass room, leaving the duel sliding doors open.

Nao went up to the stage where a single microphone was set up at the front with Maki’s drum kit in the rear. A stand to the side held Nao’s Roland G-707 guitar and on the floor of the stage was the large GR-700 synthesizer pedal box. Without her laptop computer present, Nao set her guitar to sound like an acoustic on pedal one and an electric on pedal 2. Pedal 3 split the strings into an acoustic on the bass side and electric on the treble side. Pedal 4 was the reverse of 3; she did all of this directly from the synthesizer.

Nao checked the microphone and the volume of her guitar with it still sitting in the stand, when she was satisfied she pressed the first pedal with her bare foot and stood looking at herself in the mirror on the wall in front of the stage. Nao wore a green camisole and green panty-shorts, her straight black hair had grown down to the center of her back. Nao picked up her guitar and slung it over her shoulder and checked it once again, she then found a pick and checked her settings for a final time and stepped up to the microphone.

“Test, test…This goes out to my daughters…Keiko, Miho and Haruka—I love you so much. Sleep now my darlings and let Kami-Sama watch over you; your mothers love you with all our hearts,” Nao said softly.

After a final check, she adjusted the microphone one last time and checked the volumes and then began…

“For my girls, ‘Beautiful World’ by: Hikaru Utada—Acoustica mix…” Nao said, then began strumming her guitar exactly as the song sounded, she had memorized the song after all the months of listening to it in her headphones. Nao began singing using the same tone as close to the original as possible. As the guitar tones changed from Acoustic to Electric she depressed the pedals on her synthesizer as needed including the two she programmed to be half acoustic and half electric.

As she went through the song the sound exited the open doors into the rest of the large home all the way to the bedroom she shared with Maki. Maki awoke to the music and the airy, pretty voice that sung the song. Maki looked over to where Nao would have been sleeping and saw that she wasn’t there, but her headphones and MP3 player were. The music wasn’t coming from the headphones though and Maki got out of bed and made her way down to the stage. As she came upon the room Maki could hear the song very clearly and stopped at the doorway as she saw Nao on the stage performing alone stomping the pedals of her synthesizer often to keep the guitar sounds accurate to the way they were used in the song.

It was Nao’s voice that surprised Maki the most, Nao could sing so beautifully, the song was mostly in Japanese and had parts in English and Nao handled it perfectly—like a true professional. As Nao strummed the strings for the last time at the end of the song she let the guitar keep it’s sustain and looked at Maki with tears in her eyes. Nao hefted off her guitar and put it in the stand and Maki ran up to her beginning to cry herself, she embraced her wife tightly and began kissing her cheeks and lips uncontrollably, she kept saying, “Naoko, Naoko, Naoko, I missed you so much, don’t leave me again; oh Naoko, I love you so much!”

Nao stood still and then wiped her tears as Maki gave Nao some space. Nao said, “I’m really sorry Miss Maki, I was in so much pain and I didn’t want to listen to anyone, I wanted to be alone and fight my battle alone, yet I had such a large ‘army’ that I didn’t want involved. I had my beautiful spouse, I had my ‘sister’ Sumire, I had my brothers, I had my mother, I had so many others, yet I just wanted to be alone and I know I hurt you…I’m so sorry, but I’m better now, I can manage…Keiko, Miho and Haruka are loved—eternally and are with my father; but, not only that, they are with us, in our hearts forever…please forgive me Miss Maki.”

“I will always forgive you Naoko-Chan, but you’ll have to be punished for making me worry for so long…so…do you have that ‘costume’ that your Sensei made for you? You know the one…” Maki said.

“Yes ma’am, I have it,” Nao replied softly, feeling a little embarrassed, yet she blushed and giggled a little at the fact that Maki was more concerned about dressing her up than talking over their relationship that was obviously strained—it was as though the vows at their wedding were law and Maki was just happy to have Nao back to her old self again.

“Bathe and go put it on, we are going to have company today,” Maki replied with a smile that hid her true intentions.

“Yes Miss Maki, I will obey, thank you for loving me,” Nao said as she quickly followed Maki’s instructions, leaving the stage room after turning off her equipment.

Maki smiled, she was so relieved to have her Naoko-Chan back so she closed the duel sliding doors of the recording stage and cried hysterically over the relief that she felt that the one she loved eternally was ok again.

Next time on K-ON!!!!! “Beautiful World” part 3, a small group of friends come to visit Maki and Nao. Nao and Azusa will have a confrontation that will change Nao’s psyche for the worse. Be here next Thursday!

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