Episode 27 - Full Moon's Radiance

Full Moon's Radiance (フルムーンの輝き) is the twenty-seventh episode of the Aikatsu Friends! anime series. It aired on October 11th, 2018.

Summary
"If you stand on stage, disaster will befall Kaguya"―. Afraid of her own divination, Sakuya withdraws to her dressing room and refuses to come out. Though another divination says "If tonight is a full moon, that disaster will go away", the moon up in the sky is a half-moon... Will Reflect Moon be able to participate!?

Plot
Aine worries that Kaguya will be leaving for the moon after Sakuya's worrying premonition, and she tries to tell her that they don't actually come from the moon- until Mushiro reminds her not to break character. She's forced to backtrack and come up with a story until Mio determines that the reading meant that Kaguya would likely get hurt on stage, or make a huge mistake- either way, she would be forced to stop being an Idol. This sends Aine and Kaguya into a panic after Sakuya confirms she is right.

Alone in her room, Sakuya overlooks some childhood pictures of her and Kaguya together. Due to them being twins they have always been together; Kaguya is irreplaceable and she could never imagine doing anything without her. She recalls a similar incident when she got sick one day and couldn't go on a field trip. Kaguya promised to tell her all about it but she worried because the divination said something bad would happen. She had planned on telling her what was bothering her, but she held back, and since then she's regretted it because when Kaguya came home she got sick from being exposed to the chilly mountain air due to getting lost at one point. She felt terrible for not telling her about her divination, and since then refuses to risk ever losing Kaguya again.

To her surprise, Kaguya suddenly yells out to her again. She promises that it won't be that easy to get rid of her though, she's going to embrace it head-on for the sake of her dream. No matter how hard she tried she could never be as good as Sakuya at anything they did, and she always hated this and felt terrible about herself. Sakuya never thought that though, and she assured her that she had talent too. But she knows that despite how much alike they look, everything else is the opposite. She resented Sakuya as a child- much to everyone's shock. But when she went on that field trip alone she was sure it would be great without Sakuya there; but she soon realized that she missed having her around, even if she didn't act like it. Then she chased after a bunny in hopes of bragging about it later, but she got lost in the woods. She later awoke in bed and found Sakuya waiting by her side while wondering what happened. Sakuya embraced her and cried, telling her that she never wants to lose her or else she wouldn't know what to do with herself, and in this instance, Kaguya realized how much she really meant to her. Kaguya apologized for making Sakuya worry so much, then she cried and told her that despite her feelings, she never wants to lose Sakuya either.

Since then she decided that instead of competing with her, she would become worthy of standing beside her. She was so happy to finally obtain her dream of becoming an Idol, and Friends with her. She asks Sakuya that she allow her to stand on stage with her. But to everyone's disappointment, Sakuya refuses again, bringing up how she tried to find a way to prevent Kaguya's horrible misfortune. But the only way to do that would be if tonight was a full moon. Unfortunately, it isn't, and she refuses to put any risk to Kaguya. It's then Kaguya says that a full moon will be out in fact- the both of them are two fragments of one. They can become a full moon on stage standing together.

Sakuya realizes Kaguya has a point and unlocks the door, allowing the twins to reunite. Coco introduces Reflect Moon as the final Friends to put on a performance while Kaguya and Sakuya head backstage until they are called on. Just as their turn arrives, Sakuya worriedly stops Kaguya, but she assures her that they will be fine because they will be together, and with their wonderful dresses they are invincible. Sakuya agrees and they hold hands, sharing words before they head back to change into their chosen Friends coords. They reappear on stage and perform "Bond ~Synchro Harmony~".

After a moment of silence, the crowd begins clapping for the twins while Aine and Mio watch from behind the stage in concern. Later, Coco announces that the winners of this Cup will gain access to the Diamond Friends Cup, as well as the special Brilliant Dresses. The winners are Reflect Moon; much to the twins' surprise. Sakuya bursts into tears and embraces Kaguya, relieved that nothing bad happened to her.

Maika and Ema remark on this and decide to get straight into training now so that they can improve for the sake of competition. But while Aine congratulates the girls, Mio is left in stunned silence. Mirai and Karen are shown observing the competition from nearby.

Evening arrives and the guests prepare to leave, with the Idols and their families staying behind to enjoy a big meal that has been prepared in their honor. Aine's family feels bad that she lost, but they know she can overcome the hardship and she assures them that she's alright. However, during their talk, Mio is shown leaving the room.

Elsewhere, Kaguya teasingly brings up that Sakuya's fortune was wrong. However, she doesn't really mind that much. Suddenly, a large bear jumps out and scares Kaguya- followed by a shisha when she tries to run. She clings to Sakuya as the other Idols appear, revealing that it was only a prank. They got together and decided to play a harmless prank on the winners as a celebration- and to let off some steam from the loss. Kaguya is frustrated by this, but Sakuya is delighted to see that this must have been their misfortune.

On the stage, Mio stands alone and looks out towards the audience's seats when she is surprised to find Karen and Mirai nearby. Mirai asks if she really put in enough effort when she performed and brings up that she failed to enter the "Aikatsu Zone". Seeing Mio's confusion as they recall what happened recently, she wonders if it was only a fluke. Karen then bluntly points out that there were other reasons for their loss; not only did she not help Aine draw out her power like she said she would, but it was clear she lost faith in Aine's abilities.

Mio can see they are right, and they briskly take off, leaving her to stare after them in shock.

Characters

 * Sakuya Shirayuri
 * Kaguya Shirayuri
 * Aine Yūki
 * Mio Minato
 * Maika Chōno
 * Ema Hinata
 * Karen Kamishiro
 * Mirai Asuka
 * Coco
 * Rinna Shinkai
 * Marin Manami
 * Nako Ebihara
 * Niko Nishina
 * Eru Ayukawa
 * Chihori Kumano
 * Shīna Yamahara
 * Mika Shishimaru
 * Himari Hirata
 * Iroha Inoue
 * Mushirō Haryū
 * Momone Yūki
 * Suzune Yūki
 * Kazune Yūki
 * Yoshitsune Yūki
 * Masamune Yūki
 * Nene Yūki

Trivia

 * The Noir Plume Coord and the Blanc Plume Coord make their debut in this episode.
 * The song Bond ~Synchro Harmony~ debuts as an insert song.