Episode 28 - Friends Even When We're Alone

Friends Even When We're Alone (ひとりでもフレンズ) is the twenty-eighth episode of the Aikatsu Friends! anime series. It aired on October 18th, 2018.

Summary
Mio gains a fever, which is a rare event for her. Despite feeling impatient, she takes a rest at home under the care of her mother Reiko. Looking at how Reiko works, Mio has started to realize her own faults. She is about to make a large decision for the future of Pure Palette.

Plot
Aine's mother asks her to help get breakfast ready, but when she goes to grab Penne's fish she sees the newspaper, and on the front is an article about the recent Brilliant Friends Cup. She gets so distracted that she goes to feed it to Penne until her sleepy father points out her mistake, but she claims to be okay and apologizes when they express concern. She also messes up after Momone asks her to do her hair for her and she turns on a talk show featuring Reflect Moon.

As this goes on, Mio sadly turns off the program and her mother asks if she wants breakfast. Mio refuses, and she sees how sad she looks. She notes that she feels warm and asks to check her temperature to see that Mio is beginning to get sick from exhaustion. She tells her to take things easier, but Mio refuses as she thinks about what happened with Love Me Tear and how she needs to work harder. Her mother refuses to listen and she calls Tamaki, claiming Mio is sick and needs the day off. She feels bad for doing it but refuses to let Mio argue with her, then she hangs up after apologizing.

Aine arrives to find a distressed Tamaki, Maika, and Ema waiting for her. She is surprised to find out that Mio is sick, but Tamaki asks that she focuses to help catch Mio up afterward, going on to bring up that the Diamond Friends Cup will be held in winter. Both of them have lost, but there is a single spot in the Cup left, and next month will be the Best Friends Cup to determine who the spot goes to. She warns the girls not to let a single moment go to waste.

Outside, Aine uses Coco to try to learn more about the Cup. Coco informs her that not only are the judges extremely strict but if nobody is good enough then there won't even be a winner and nobody will get to join the final Cup. The girls are a bit concerned, but Maika and Ema promise to improve themselves, deciding to book several more performances so that they can hone their skills and meet more fans. Aine wishes them luck as they take off and she decides to get to work training too. She starts by running up and down a set of stairs at the field repeatedly, then she pulls a heavy tire by a rope on her waist and finally does some push-ups. But by now she's unable to focus without Mio and sadly collapses. She is joined by Himari and Iroha, and they offer to help her out since they have some free time and see that Mio isn't there. She thanks them and they remark on how lonely she looks without Mio there- since she's usually there with her. This causes Aine to stop and wonder if maybe Mio feels the same way.

Meanwhile, Mio is unable to sleep and she gets up to grab a drink. Her mother is in the middle of business on the phone and she pauses to see if she is alright, then she asks for a moment to help her. As this goes on, Mio observes the various work items her mother has spread out, and she recalls how much fun she had as a child watching her. She would grab her own items and join her, sketching various designs. Her mother was very impressed by this, and eventually, Mio got into modeling work, which led to her becoming an Idol and soon developing her own brand.

By now Mio has gotten her drink and she returns to her bedroom. Still disappointed, she recalls how she felt to have lost and how much pain she felt from being told off by Love Me Tear. She observes the drink she got and suddenly decides she must go. She gets up and changes into her training clothing as quietly as possible- but when the doorbell suddenly rings, she hurries up until she is caught by her mother. They begin to argue, with her mother trying to convince her to stay home while she's sick and Mio refusing so that she can go and see Aine. But to her surprise, she turns to find out that their guest is Aine, who came with some items to help her feel better; mainly stuff to make food for Mio, who is flustered upon realizing she's actually really hungry.

As Aine prepares the meal, she explains to the impressed mother of her friend how her mom taught her that chicken could be good against fatigue. Mio's mother admits that she doesn't have much food knowledge herself, and how Mio seems to enjoy critically rating everything she makes lately. She returns to work as Mio apologizes for suddenly vanishing as she did, but Aine insists it's nothing. Mio helped her feel better when she got a sore throat, and now it's her turn to save her dear friend in need. Her mother is touched by this gesture between friends and she goes on to make a call as Aine and Mio sadly think about their loss again. While they are starting to feel better, it still stings a little after everything. Aine brings up how cool it is that Mio's mother is a designer too, and hearing her, Mio tells her that she can go to work since she's feeling better. However, her mother refuses and claims that taking off one day won't be a big deal. Mio isn't so sure, asking her if she feels restless doing this, or worry over becoming a burden, but she claims she doesn't. She believes in everyone she works with and knows they will be okay. She then asks Aine if she may have some of the porridge she made, leaving Mio with her thoughts.

As evening rolls along, Mio observes her glittering Friends coord in her coord binder and wonders if she really doubted Aine. As she recalls their excursion when they jumped off of that bridge into the water, she realizes she can't keep doing this. She needs them to become stronger, and she quickly grabs some of her drawing items.

Meanwhile, Aine sadly looks through her Friend Album and thinks about how desperately Mio was to get back to Aikatsu earlier. She thinks about Mio's mother's words and fears she isn't reliable enough for Mio, which is probably why she had been so worried and wasn't able to properly rest as of late.

The following day Mio apologizes for any problems she may have caused, but Tamaki is glad to see she's okay. She brings up that Pure Palette has three magazine interviews to attend to when they are joined by Ken and Kagami, the young man they met a while back when students from outside of their school paid a visit. He's been under Ken studying since that day he spoke to him, impressing them with his resolve; and the Kaga dyed cookies and lacquer candy he brought from home. Ken tells him to get to work and Kagami runs off to set up his supplies. After finishing the girls get to work with a photo-shoot and their first interview, with the girls realizing that they feel the same way; they must focus on breaking the mold and trusting each other more than ever before if they want to be able to stand a chance.

Once their work finishes, Tamaki congratulates the girls on their efforts and produces two tickets to the upcoming Love Me Tear concert. Aine is surprised by this, but Mio explains that because of what happened she thought it would be best to learn by watching them perform again. As they take their seats, Mirai and Karen change into their chosen Friends coords and appear on stage to perform "Believe it". Mio is left feeling depressed as she expresses to Aine that before, Love Me Tear felt like it was within grasp because of their efforts- but now they have become starts within the far distance. She takes off, with Aine quickly following her.

As the girls make their way home Aine and Mio stop when they see the Ferris Wheel in the distance, the one where Pure Palette was born. Mio explains that before the Brilliant Friends Cup she had felt a spark telling her that they were good enough to surpass Love Me Tear; she didn't even consider the fact they could lose because she was so confident. Aine agrees as they resume walking. Mio sadly wonders why her instincts led her astray, saying that she got the same feeling back when they first met and performed, and their loss left her in shock. Aine claims that she felt the same way, saying that because of how much fun she had and how well everything was going, she never once thought about how lonely and useless she was without Mio by her side. She realizes she put a huge burden on Mio without even realizing it, and she has to improve for her sake.

Silently, Mio tries to deny these words and she takes something from her pocket. She used this opportunity to reevaluate Pure Palette, and she has come to an important decision. Aine is delighted by this and claims to have never lost faith in Mio over this time- but when Mio suggests putting Pure Palette on hold, she is devastated. But she understands. She couldn't deny the request of a friend, even something like this. Mio hands her the item from her pocket, a metallic charm she made for her to represent Pure Palette. She reveals that she has her own, and their design is only complete when they come together. Aine thanks her and they hold hands, turning to observe the Ferris Wheel in the distance.

Soon, news of their break up gets out. Tamaki is well aware that they wouldn't be able to cover it up very long, but before they can say anything else, Ema and Maika tiredly run into the room to bring up the article. Sadly they confirm its true, and they try to convince them to reconsider- but Tamaki points out it's of no use. Aine and Mio claim they came to the decision together, and how further down the line it will serve to help Pure Palette. Then they take off, with Tamaki, Chiharu, and Ken worriedly watching them. This will be a long, and hard journey for them. Ken points out that there have been many friends who were unable to work out their differences, and after separating they were unable to come together again.

Outside, Aine and Mio share a high-five and stare at each other. While observing their charms, they sadly turn away and leave the school in different directions.

Characters

 * Mio Minato
 * Aine Yūki
 * Reiko Minato
 * Karen Kamishiro
 * Mirai Asuka
 * Ema Hinata
 * Maika Chōno
 * Sakuya Shirayuri
 * Kaguya Shirayuri
 * Coco
 * Tamaki Enjōji
 * Ken Mayuzumi
 * Chiharu Hachiya
 * Momone Yūki
 * Masamune Yūki
 * Nene Yūki
 * Penne
 * Himari Hirata
 * Iroha Inoue
 * Kagami Noto