Scenery of Memory - Vocaloid 神威がくぽx巡音ルカ

💜💗💜💗💜 Story 💗💜💗💜💗 In the studio that afternoon, the final lighting setup had been adjusted. The photographer stood behind the camera, looking at the two people before him, checking every detail in the frame. Kamui Gakupo and Megurine Luka were doing a photoshoot together today. From the very beginning, the whole shoot had gone smoothly. The studio had several different sets prepared, and the two of them settled in quickly. Rather than deliberately making exaggerated expressions, they were more used to completing a shot with natural gazes and subtle movements. Sometimes they simply stood quietly. Sometimes they moved a little closer to each other. Sometimes they stood a short distance apart, looking at one another. The photographer soon realized that as long as he let the two of them be natural together, the photos came out with a very comfortable feel. Before the last set began, the photographer raised his camera. "You two, for this one we won't look at the lens." Luka nodded. "Then where should we look?" The photographer smiled. "At each other." Luka was briefly taken aback, then turned to look at Gakupo. "Face to face?" "Yes." Gakupo nodded as well. "Understood." The two of them moved to the center of the studio. This time, they did not stand side by side, nor did they face the camera. Instead, they stood facing each other. Luka stood in front of Gakupo and gently lifted her eyes. Gakupo lowered his gaze. Their eyes met in the middle. The studio suddenly grew very quiet. There had been the sound of staff moving around, but when the photographer raised the camera, everyone deliberately softened their movements. Luka looked at Gakupo. She had thought she might feel a little awkward. After all, during usual shoots it was easier to control her expression when looking at the lens, but now that the photographer had asked them to face each other directly, she could clearly feel the other's gaze. Gakupo's expression remained calm. Only, those eyes did not look away. Luka couldn't help smiling slightly. Gakupo noticed her smile too. His expression didn't change much, but his eyes softened a little. *Click.* The shutter sounded. The photographer didn't have them change positions. "Very good." *Click.* "Hold it right there." *Click.* Luka was still looking at Gakupo. She even felt as if time had slowed down a little. It was only an ordinary photoshoot, yet when the two of them stood face to face without any unnecessary movement, everything around them became even quieter. After the last few shots were taken, the photographer finally lowered his camera. "Great, that's a wrap for today." Luka blinked slowly. "It's finished?" "It's finished." She let out a soft breath. "I was looking at you the whole time, and I almost forgot the photographer was still taking pictures." Gakupo was slightly startled. "Is that so?" "Yes." Luka said with a smile. "Because you never looked away." "The photographer asked us to look at each other." "But you looked so earnestly." Gakupo was silent for a moment. "Since it's work, it should be done properly." Luka couldn't help laughing. "That's exactly what you would say." The two left the shooting area and sat down in the lounge. Luka picked up the water on the table and took a sip. "Today went more smoothly than I expected." Gakupo nodded. "The shooting time was also shorter than planned." "And the photographer seemed to really like those shots we just did." "Mm." They chatted for a while, and the retoucher began organizing the day's photos. They had thought they'd have to wait for some time, but before long the retoucher came over from the work area. "You two, could you come take a look?" Luka looked up. "Already done?" "I've finished a preliminary version." Gakupo and Luka walked over together. The retoucher put one of the photos up on the screen. At first, Luka didn't react much. Until she noticed her costume. "Huh?" She leaned in closer. The costume from the shoot now had some natural scenery elements added to it. Tiny flowers, branches and leaves, the sky, and distant landscapes blended naturally into the fabric. Those elements didn't cover the original costume, nor did they steal attention from the two figures. Instead, they seemed to grow naturally along the lines of the fabric itself. Luka blinked. "This was added in post-production?" The retoucher nodded with a smile. "Yes." Gakupo also studied the screen carefully. "The blending is very good." "I wanted to keep the feel of the original shoot, so I didn't add too much." As he spoke, the retoucher switched to the next photo. This time, the two in the photo were still facing each other. Luka looked up at Gakupo. Gakupo looked down and met her gaze. Yet on their costumes, the surrounding scenery had already been naturally woven in. Luka suddenly fell silent. She stared at the screen for several seconds. "So beautiful..." Gakupo said nothing. His gaze also lingered on the photo. Noticing their reactions, the retoucher continued switching through the photos. The third. The fourth. The natural scenery in each photo was slightly different. In some places you could see branches and leaves, in others flowers, and in others it was as if the sky and distant views had been blended into the costumes. But in every one, the most prominent thing was still the two figures. Especially the gaze that met between them as they faced each other. Luka couldn't help pointing at one of them. "This one is so beautiful." Gakupo looked over. "Mm." "Look at the way we're looking at each other." "I see it." Luka said with a smile: "It really looks like we're earnestly looking at each other." Gakupo was quiet for a moment. "That's how it was during the shoot." Luka turned to look at him. "But the photo looks even more natural than I imagined." "Perhaps because we didn't deliberately do anything." "Mm." Luka looked at the screen again. She really liked this feeling. There hadn't been many arranged movements, nor any requirement for the two of them to make certain expressions. Just facing each other. Just looking at each other. And yet it made the photo feel so complete. The retoucher changed to another one. This time, the two in the photo were slightly closer together. Luka's gaze fell into Gakupo's eyes, and Gakupo didn't avoid it either. The scenery on the costumes extended from their shoulders all the way down to the hems. Flowers and leaves formed a natural continuity around their figures. Luka's eyes widened. "Wait..." She nearly pressed herself up against the screen. "This one is truly too beautiful." The retoucher asked with a smile: "Do you like it?" Luka nodded without hesitation. "I do." Gakupo nodded too. "It's very beautiful." The retoucher went on: "I deliberately kept your original lighting, so after adding the natural elements, the original atmosphere didn't change." Luka looked closely. "No wonder it doesn't look jarring." "Right." Gakupo noticed another detail. "The creases in the clothes were preserved too." "Yes." said the retoucher. "So it looks more like the scenery was on the costumes all along." Luka nodded softly. "It really does." She looked through a few more. Each time the image changed, she showed a different degree of delight. By the last one, she was simply stunned. In the photo, the two stood facing each other. Not looking at the camera. Not deliberately smiling. Just quietly gazing at one another. Natural scenery had been added to their costumes, blended seamlessly with the surrounding light and shadow. Luka looked at the photo. For several seconds she said nothing. Gakupo was equally quiet. The retoucher stood to one side, waiting for their reaction. Finally, Luka couldn't help exclaiming. "It's so beautiful!" Her voice was full of delight. Almost at the same moment, Gakupo murmured: "So beautiful." Luka immediately turned to look at him. "You think so too?" "Mm." "We said the same thing at the same time again." Gakupo smiled faintly. "Because the photo really is good." Luka looked at him. "It's not just the photo, is it?" Gakupo was slightly startled. "What?" Luka pointed at the screen. "It's the two of us." Gakupo didn't answer right away. He looked at the photo again. The two figures in the frame were still facing each other. In that instant, he suddenly understood why Luka liked this one so much. The photo hadn't turned them into strangers. It had simply preserved the most natural moment from the shoot. Two people looking at each other. No unnecessary movements. No deliberate expressions. Just looking at one another. Luka was quiet for a while, then suddenly smiled. "I want to keep this one." "You may." "I'll put it in my own album." "All right." "And I don't want just the regular version." "Then what do you want?" Luka pointed at the screen. "I want this version." Gakupo nodded. "No problem." The retoucher said with a smile: "Then I'll hand you the finished versions together later." Luka glanced at the photo once more. The corners of her mouth kept their smile. "Today's shoot feels like it has more commemorative value than I originally imagined." Gakupo stood beside her. "I feel the same." The two looked at the screen again. In that photo, they stood facing each other. Their gazes quietly meeting. The natural scenery was woven into their costumes, like a memory that had been preserved. And outside the studio, the sun was slowly setting. Warm light came through the windows and fell beside the two of them. Luka suddenly turned her head. "Gakupo." "Mm?" "If there's another shoot like this next time, let's do it together again." Gakupo looked at her. After a moment, he gave a soft nod. "All right." Luka smiled. "It's a promise." "It's a promise." Their eyes met once more. This time there was no photographer and no sound of a shutter. Yet it felt more natural than any moment in the photographs.