#and now i need to see how umi/kotori/rin sounds-

[lonelypond]

Parent Trap, Ch. 9

NicoMaki, NozoEli, Love Live, 2.6K 9/?

Summary: Maki is on a mission; Nico is on the job.

Car Culture

Dia was crying. Maki groaned. Why wasn’t Raye...oh, no Raye. With a curse, Maki kicked off her blanket, catapulted out of bed, grabbing a robe to throw on, feet awkwardly groping for slippers. A message blinking on her muted phone. Nico. At 5 a.m.

N: Hope you and Dia have a good day. Nico’s going to be so busy ε= ٩(●❛ö❛)۶

N: But Maki will be so impressed when Nico’s video’s done.

No kiss emoji, no hearts, no...Nico-ness...a wail from Dia. Maki had no time to mope. Or make up. She had a growing, growling, grumpy daughter demanding all her attention.

###

“Maki, calm down.” Rin leaned back against the arm of her couch, sending her calmest mood at Maki.

“It’s been two and a half days, Rin. Dia doesn’t want to eat anything, keeps asking for Nico, who’s too busy to answer her damn phone, and I CAN’T TAKE ANY MORE LILO AND STITCH.”

Rin could see Maki pacing, kicking the rug that was at the center of the cabin’s main room. Dia was probably napping, like Tora. Maki needed to nap more. “Calm down, Maki. I’ll drive up there. Why are you in Wisconsin anyway? Where’s Raye?”

“Can you watch Dia?” Maki had no volume control. Rin grimaced, rubbing her ear.

“Is that Maki?” Hanayo stuck her head in, “Can you ask her what Nico’s new…”

Rin made a slashing gesture to head off Hanayo’s question. Hanayo pouted. Rin walked to the door, gently pushed Hanayo one step away, and closed the door.

“Maki, are you all right to drive?”

“Of course, I’m all right to drive.”

“But you sound so angry.”

“You’ve known me for more than a decade, Rin. When has anger interfered with anything?”

Rin could check off a huge list of times. But that would not calm Maki down. “So you’re going to see Nico?”

“Yeah, there’s this huge party we got invited to. ” Maki was now moderating her volume.

But Maki’s declaration had kicked Rin into red zone worried mode. “You’re going to a huge party. Because of Nico. Do you know anyone else who’ll be there?”

“Honoka will be there.”

Rin blinked. Maki and Honoka parties were a legendary recipe for disaster. Honoka’s impulsiveness brought out Maki’s idgaf core principle. Mix in alcohol and...

“I just want to talk to someone taller than my knee, Rin.” Maki sounded desperate.

“We’re talking. I’m taller than your knee.” Rin fell back on the couch. This was bad.

Maki’s voice softened. “Please, just watch Dia for me for a couple of days. She really misses Tora.”

“So you’re meeting Nico there?” That wouldn’t be so bad.

“Probably, sure, I don’t know the exact details yet.”

“I’m worried about you, Maki, you sound really upset. And you and Honoka and parties...”

Maki didn’t let Rin go drag out her history. “Rin, just please…”

“What?”

“Take care of my daughter.” Maki was tapping on something, probably unconsciously, Rin could hear the vibrations. “Nico’s upset because my parents sent me to Wisconsin, Nico likes parties, I REALLY miss Nico and…” Maki sounded nervous, Rin knew how reluctant her friend was to discuss anything related to dating and sex, “that disconnect is starting to happen.”

“So meet Nico somewhere and…”

“Rin, I am driving to Chicago, I am changing into a sexy dress, I am going to a party, I am going to down a couple of shots of something, and I am going home with my girlfriend.”

Rin sighed, “We’ll talk when you get here. Just please drive carefully. For me. And Dia.”

“Of course, I will.” Maki exhaled, “Thanks, Rin.”

“I’m your bestie, Maki.”

Maki laughed, “See you soon.”

Rin hoped five hours driving would wear Maki out enough to be reasoned with.

###

Nico couldn’t slump yet. Fourteen hours on the set, the crew were getting ready for the big stunt, Cocoro was confirming the details of something with the director, and Umi was handing Nico a bottle of electrolyte solution, a bright enough green to wake Nico up.

“Start with that.” Umi frowned, “You don’t want to get sick.”

“Thanks, Umi.”

“When does your tour start?”

“Too soon,” Nico swallowed a cough.

“It is essential to allow yourself a chance to recover physically from the kind of exertion you are experiencing.”

“You’re not my doctor.”

“I’m sure Maki would say the same.”

“She’s not my doctor either. She doesn’t know anything about this kind of day.” Nico chugged the entire bottle.

Umi seemed genuinely puzzled. “If you don’t talk about your work, what do you talk about?”

“Nico doesn’t remember, it’s just kind of a tired sexy blur. Maki’s surprisingly....”

Umi didn’t have to frown. Her entire posture screamed displeasure at Nico’s cavalier comment.

“Sorry. Nico just misses Maki.” Nico tossed the bottle into the recycling barrel, “We’ve been talking about our pasts. Talking about the present gets us to Dia and…”

Nico’s phone pinged. Maki’s ringtone. “Hang on a sec.” Nico switched to full charm mode, Umi didn’t know where she found the energy. “Hey, sexy.”

“Nico, you have to come here, now.” A shrill, panicky voice.

“Who is this? Where’s Maki?”

“In the shower.”

“Who is this?”

Umi was surprised by the anger in Nico’s voice.

“It’s Rin, you know, Maki’s bestie.”

Nico could feel her forehead clench. “Is Maki okay? Is something wrong with Dia? Why are you on her phone.”

“Cause I don’t have your number on mine, duh. You have to come here. Now.”

NIco sagged, leaning against a wall, “Okay, Rin, where do you want Nico to go? Wisconsin?”

“Nah, Maki’s at me and Kayo-chin’s house.”

That was news to Nico. When and why had that happened? Nico sighed. She needed more than electrolytes and sugar to deal with this.

Rin continued. “Maki wants to go to this big party, to meet you, but it’s a Honoka party and whenever Maki goes to a Honoka party in this mood, there’s tequila and…”

“How can Maki meet Nico if Nico isn’t going to the party? Nico is working.” Nico flung out a hand as if to show Rin everything and everyone on the set.

“Oh, she won’t like that.” Rin sounded sad.

“Hang on a sec.” Nico put her hand over the mic, “Was Honoka Maki’s college roommate?”

Umi nodded, “Briefly, why?”

“Just learning some more Maki facts…”

Rin’s loud chirp called Nico’s attention back to her phone. “So you’ll take Maki to the party. I’ll tell Maki I ordered her a ride. It’ll be a good surprise.”

Nico wanted to punch the wall. “Nico can’t pick up Maki. Nico has to finish filming a dance, crash a car, rescue a dangerous damsel, and save the world.”

“But what am I gonna do, Nico?” A whine.

“Tell Maki to skip the party and call me later. For pizza or something, Nico knows a place.” And that was as much help as Rin was getting from Nico. Maki was an adult, she could make her own choices. Nico chose to follow through on her responsibilities.

Call ended, Nico slid the mute button over and tossed her phone into her bag. “And now Nico blows everybody away.”

Umi nodded, already going down her mental checklist for Nico’s upcoming stunt. “Make sure the safety harness is tight. I’ll go over all the fastenings.”

“You’re just fas-cinated by Nico Ni.” Nico bounced into her pose.

Umi stared at Nico, then quirked an eyebrow, “That tired, huh?”

Lowering her hands, Nico giggled, which lightened the weight, “Yeah, I guess so.”

###

“Is my ride here yet, Rin? Did Dia get to sleep? I still have to dry my hair.” Maki, a towel slung over her head, dressed in a clinging lilac to near black ombre swing dress. Rin grabbed Maki, forcing her into a seat.

“What the hell, Rin?” Pulling off the towel, Maki glared.

Rin had her hands on her hips, her expression serious, finger wagging at Maki’s nose. “You’re grounded, Maki. No parties.”

Maki stood, looming over Rin, staring down at her oldest friend. “I’ll say it again, Rin, what the hell?”

“Nico’s not going to that party. You’re in a foul mood and you’ll just get in trouble. You know how you get.”

“You got really boring.” Maki pushed Rin back.

Rin shook her head, “No. I’m a mom. In a relationship. And so are you. And Nico’s a real person with feelings and a stunt car crash to do…”

Maki pulled Rin back, lifting the shorter woman off her feet, nose to nose, “What do you mean, stunt car crash?”

“Nico said she had to” Rin concentrated, “Crash a car, rescue a girl, save the world.”

Maki dropped Rin and glanced at the nearest clock, it was after 9 p.m. “She’s still working? She stared at 5 a.m.”

“You work crazy shifts.”

“I’m used to it…” Maki tapped Rin on the shoulder, “How do you know so much about Nico?”

“I called her to tell her to take you to the party. And she said she had to crash a car.’ Rin inhaled, her chartreuse eyes determined.“You need to communicate better with Nico if you want a successful relationship like me and Kayo-chin, Maki.”

Maki sagged into the couch, head in her hands. Rin was practicing her parent of a teenager moves and Maki did not appreciate it. “Where is she?”

RIn shrugged.

Maki grabbed her phone, hitting Nico’s number. No reply. Then she tried Cocoro.

“Cocoro Yazawa. Can I help you?”

“This is Maki. Let me talk to Nico.”

“I’m sorry, Dr. Nishikino, my sister left no instructions about being interrupted.”

“Where are you?” Maki felt her jaw clench.

“I’m sorry, Dr. Nishikino, but the set location is secret.”

“Tell me…”

Cocoro’s curt, professional tones cut off Maki’s snapped demand, “I will let Nico Ni know you called, Dr. Nishikino.”

And a ringtone. Maki wanted to throttle Cocoro. But that wouldn’t be any way to make inroads with Nico. Umi, Nico had hired Umi, Umi would...no, Kotori would, Kotori could be persuaded to share information. Umi’s integrity was unbreachable by anyone not Kotori.

###

“Hey, is Nico coming home tonight?” Nozomi slid next to Eli on the couch, wearing Eli's robe, her hair loose and luxurious.

Eli put down her Atlantic magazine, “I don’t know. Why?”

“I want you to stop pretending you’re mad at me and sleep in my bed.” Nozomi bit at Eli's shoulder.

Eli snorted, “How romantic.”

“I’m not offering romantic.” Nozomi took the magazine out of Eli’s hand, then grabbed Eli’s wrists to pull her closer, green eyes alit with dangerous urges. “You have needs. I have wants. And really really graphic fantasies.” Nozomi’s tongue licked from Eli’s ear to her...

“NOZOMI!”

“Text Nico, tell her to sleep in her own bed. Unless you want her to know that you…”

Eli put both her hands on Nozomi’s face, pulled her beloved, impossible wife in close, and drifted into a slow promise of the deepest of kisses, the only way to stop the avalanche of provocation. Then she grabbed her phone.

###

Nico winced, her ears still ringing. The boom had blasted through her hearing protection and her head had maybe, maybe contacted the crash foam. She couldn’t exactly remember the sequence of events. The helmet had helped, but pulling it off dramatically had been immediately followed by a wobbly tilt into the car. Nico was now taking a minute, eyes closed, to rest before checking if the world really was spinning.

“NICO!”

The crash must have messed her up, she thought she heard Maki’s voice. Bad enough she’d nearly messed up the timing because she kept wondering if Maki had gone to Tsubasa’s party and how many shots of tequila had she downed. Maybe Nico had been thinking about tequila so much Nico was sympathetic tipsy.

“Nico?”

A hand on Nico’s arm, with a grip that was going to add to Nico’s bruises. Arnica gel, entire tube, maybe Nico could find a sympathetic dancer who had massage skills. Nico opened her eyes. Maki, face flushed, gorgeous eyes weary and worried, a killer ombre shaded dress clinging to curves that made Nico instantly more alert. Maki smiled at Nico, then opened her sling bag and handed Nico a menu.

“Read the prices to me, Nico.”

After a couple of minutes, Nico realized what was odd. “You carry pizza menus around with you?”

“Just read the numbers, Nico.” Maki’s beautiful long fingers traced a pattern on the paper.

Maki had knelt, staring up into Nico’s face. It was all weird. “What kind of a date is this? Quizzes first?”

“It’s a concussion test, Nico. Eye movement is one of the biggest disruptions.”

“You like….” Nico wondered why she’d started that sentence. “Eyes, Nico’s eyes.”

Maki bit her lip, nervous, it was sexy adorable, and Nico would have given up a platinum record to not be feeling nauseous.

Umi appeared next to Maki. “I checked the footage. There was definite head contact. Cocoro’s sending everyone home. I’m glad you’re here, Maki.”

“Nico, can you read me the prices of a couple of appetizers, three pizzas, and a dessert.” Maki’s voice was very calm, but Umi noticed her hands trembling.

“Clever.” Umi whispered.

“Just order whatever you want, Maki.” Nico let the menu drop, “Nico will pay.” Nico leaned back onto the car, Maki and Umi with a quick glance agreed to split and support Nico from either side.

“C’mon Nico, I’m taking you home.” Maki said quietly.

Nico frowned, “Nah, Eli’s right?”

“Are you sure she shouldn’t go to an ER?” Umi pulled her phone out, ready to hit 911.

“I’ll take her if her symptoms worsen.” Maki tapped the car hood, considering. “I want to avoid noise and people.”

“Hey, Sis!” Cocoro raced up, “The director wants to talk to you about tomorrow.”

“Nico won’t be here tomorrow.” Maki snapped.

Cocoro shoved between Maki and Nico, “You have no authority here, Ms. Nishikino. Nico handles everything.”

Maki spoke deliberately. “There is a high likelihood that Nico has a concussion. She will need to recover before she does anything else.”

Nico smiled and hugged her sister, “Hey, Cocoro! Where’s the car?”

“We can still shoot some of the background scenes tomorrow, Cocoro, if I remember the storyboard correctly. I’ll help you figure out who we need.” Umi pulled Cocoro to the side, trusting Maki to support Nico.

“But Tsubasa’s scheduled…”

“Tsubasa…” Nico raspberried, “can go away.”

“Is there a problem with her cameo? Cocoro sounded concerned.

“The problem is your sister has a concussion.” Maki put her arm around Nico’s waist, Nico leaned in to her, “I’m taking her home.”

“To your place?” Cocoro relaxed, “Good. Eli called me, Nico. She said she needed some wife time.”

Nico didn’t appear to be listening.

Maki did not want to deal with her parents. “We’ll just go to her house. I know the address.”

Cocoro frowned, “But there’ll be…”

Umi decided the matter, “That’s a good idea, Maki. Nico gets dropped off sometimes on the block behind and sneaks through her neighbor’s backyard. I suggest that.”

“Okay.” Maki kept careful watch of Nico, “Text me the address.”

“I’ll drive you. They’ll be watching for your car.”

“This one’s got Wisconsin plates. No one’s seen it.” Maki pulled a beanie out of her bag and pulled it over her red hair. She handed another one to Nico, “Let’s be spies.”

Nico stared at the hat, as if unsure what to do with it. Cocoro, after a glance at Maki, stepped forward and pulled it over Nico’s carefully coiffed apocalypse hair. “Dr. Nishikino’s gonna take good care of you, sis.”

“Nico doesn’t need a doctor.” Grumpy, hunched Nico detached from Maki to lean against the car.

“All right, Nico, I won’t be just a doctor.” Maki blinked, feeling tears in the corner of her eyes, “But buy me that pizza. For our date.”

Nico nodded, “Okay.”

“Let’s go pick it up.”

Nico stood, Maki offered her hand, Nico reached for it, missing the first time, “I’ll drive.”

Maki hummed.

A/N: Good and sad things the past week, hope you are well.

[ryqoshay]

How to Handle a Nico - The No. 1 Masseuse in the Universe

Primary Pairing: NicoMaki Words: ~1.8k Rating: T’ish? Time Frame: Summer break of Maki’s 2nd year of high school and Nico’s 1st year of college. Story Arc: “Beach Reunion” Sunscreen The No. 1 Masseuse in the Universe

Author’s Note: This was originally intended to be about a 100 - 200 word addition to the end of Sunscreen, but I thought I might be able to build a full scene around it. So I did.

I’m also hoping my readers have seen the LL movie by now, as it’s referenced a little bit here.

And here she comes… Nico thought to herself as she spied a certain meddlesome purple haired girl heading in her direction. Ughn… that smug face of hers… Unfortunately, Nico was busy tending the grill as her part of preparing dinner for the group and thus had no means of escaping the teasing she knew was incoming.

“Ne~, Nicocchi~,” Nozomi drawled as she approached “I heard someone was having a bit of fun earlier.” She emphasized the word heard, accompanied by a wholly unnecessarily waggle of her eyebrows.

“Shut up, Nozomi.” Nico grumbled, trying to make it obvious she was focusing on the meat skewers in front of her.

But of course, someone like Nozomi would never just let something like this go. “You and Maki-chan seem to be getting along nicely as of late.” She continued. “I haven’t even heard much of your usual study session bickering. Are you two perhaps making some progress I should know about?”

“No.” Nico dismissed flatly. “And you know the reasons why.”

“I see, well, that’s too bad.” At least that part sounded sincere. “I still think you two would make a cute couple, and you know I’m here to support you however things go.”

“I know.” Nico nodded. “Say, what’s that behind your back?”

“Oh, Elicchi and I just prepared some fruit kebobs” Nozomi revealed the food “with the extra sticks and thought the No. 1 Grill Master in the Universe would be willing to cook them up.”

“Wow, those look amazing.” Nico marveled. “I mean,” she puffed out her chest with pride “of course Nico would be more than happy to reveal more of her mastery of the flame.” She clapped her tongs together a couple times for emphasis.

Nozomi giggled and started to place the kebobs onto the grate.

“Wait, not quite…” Nico snapped up one of the meat skewers and turned it for inspection “well, maybe it’s fine. Uhm, hand me that plate so I can put these on it.”

“Here you go.” The purple-haired girl did as instructed.

“And don’t be stealing any of these before putting them out on the table.” The raven-haired girl warned.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Uh-huh…”

Once the plate was full, Nozomi turned and began to walk away.

“So that was it?” Nico couldn’t help asking.

“Hmm?” The other girl paused and turned to look back over her shoulder.

“I mean…”

The Cheshire cat grin returned. “Don’t worry, Nicocchi, the cards told me something good will happen very soon.”

“Hrm… Hey! What did I say about taking…” Nico was about to chase after Nozomi when she remembered the freshly loaded fruit kebobs that now needed tending.

“Oh, Mama just messaged me” Maki announced, retrieving her phone as the credits began to roll for the movie the girls had just finished “she says she’s sorry for not remembering earlier, but the staff moved all of the futons to one of our other places for some retreat a friend of hers hosted last week and they haven’t been able to bring them back.”

“So, we can’t all sleep here like the other times?” Honoka asked.

“Well, we could.” The redhead acknowledged. “I’m sure there are enough blankets, but there are four bedrooms we could use if we don’t mind sharing.”

“So kinda like our New York trip?”

“Something like that, though each room only has one bed...”

“That’s fine! Umi-chan and Kotori-chan and I can share one.”

“The biggest guestroom is at the end of the hall.”

“Alright, let’s go to bed!” Honoka cheered, grabbing the arms of her two fellow third-years.

“H-Honoka…” Umi protested verbally, though didn’t appear to offer any appreciable resistance. “You had better not start snacking on chips the moment the lights go out.”

“That was just one time!” The orange-haired girl pouted.

“More like pretty much every time…”

“Don’t worry, Umi-chan,” Kotori chimed in “I’ll be sure to check her bag for any contraband.”

“Kotori-chan!” Honoka whined. “You two are mean.” Though despite her words, she continued to drag her friends up the stairs toward the room she had claimed for them.

“Rin and Kayo-chin are fine with the smallest bedroom.” Rin proclaimed next. “We’re used to sharing a bed these days, nya!” She pulled the other second-year into a one-armed hug.

“Rin-chan…” Hanayo murmured but didn’t disagree.

“Actually, the remaining two guest rooms are the same size.” Maki explained.

“You’re taking the master bedroom, Maki-chan?” Nozomi asked of the host.

“Of course, I thought that much was obvious.”

“Then Elicchi and I will take whichever room Rin-chan and Hanayo-chan don’t use.” She tossed a quick wink to Nico.

“See you all in the morning.” Eli said before yawning and following her girlfriend.

“So, that leaves…” Nico turned to the other remaining occupant of the living room.

“You can stay with me in the master bedroom.” Maki offered quietly. “If that’s alright with you, of course.”

If it’s alright? Nico thought to herself. Of course, it’s alright! This is how I wanted the room arrangements to be in New York!

But instead of giving voice to these thoughts, what came out of Nico’s mouth was “I suppose it can’t be helped. Nico will grace Maki’s bed with her presence tonight.”

“Or you can sleep on the couch.” The younger girl motioned to the mentioned sofa.

Nico giggled before striking a dramatic pose and held out her hand. “Lead the way to the master suite, Maki-ojou-sama.” She teased with the title she had heard used by the Nishikino household staff.

Maki rolled her eyes but took the older girl’s hand anyway as the two headed up the stairs.

“Ne, Nico-chan…”

“Mmm?” Nico looked up from the idol site she was browsing on her phone and took in a pleasing view.

Maki had just exited the bathroom, clad in her favorite purple pajamas with white stars and still drying her hair. She had insisted that since Nico was the guest that the older girl take the first turn in the tub and was now done with her own.

“About that offer of a massage…”

“Oh ho!” Nico couldn’t help feeling a bit giddy. As if sharing a room wasn’t enough to make her believe Nozomi’s prediction, this certainly solidified things. “Maki-chan is anxious to take advantage of the No. 1 Masseuse in the Universe’s skills already?”

“Just realized in the bath that I’m a little sore after everything we did today.” Maki admitted.

“Someone having a bit too much fun?” Nico happily added a sing-song tone to her voice.

“…” Maki puffed out a frustrated breath as she made her way toward the bed.

“Well, Nico is ready to provide the service, even if Maki-chan hasn’t paid for it yet.”

“You know I’m good for it.” Maki lay down on her stomach. “Besides, I’d probably end up helping you anyway, even without this; heck I’ve probably already paid for it several times over.”

“You sure you want to strike an attitude with someone about to give you a massage?”

Maki sighed. “No, you’re right. It’s just that cram school has been really stressful lately…”

“Yeah,” Nico said, getting up off the bed “I figured that when you upped your order from quad to quint.”

“Nico-chan?”

“Just getting you some water. I’ve read studies recently that say drinking before a massage may actually be better than after, as the water is already starting to work through your system when the toxins are released from the massage.”

“Hrm…”

“Trust me. Here.” Nico held out a bottle.

“Alright.” Maki accepted the water and drank a good portion of it before handing the remainder back. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Nico put the bottle on the nightstand.

“Anyway, this little vacation has honestly been the best break I could ask for…” Maki continued. “And… I’m happy you’re here with me for it.”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way.” Nico couldn’t help smiling at the unexpected, but by no means unappreciated honesty. “Nico always enjoys her time with her favoritest Maki-chan.”

Maki hummed an affirmative response.

“So, how thick are the walls here?”

“Hm?”

“Because…” Nico placed her hands on the other girl’s back. Immediately, she found one of the knots she had noticed earlier that day and pressed into it with her thumb.

“Ughn…” Maki pressed her face into the duvet.

“That’s why.”

“I’ll… be fine…”

“So you say…” Nico chuckled as the redhead was forced to muffle herself again.

As Nico found yet another knot, she wondered how hard she should work it. She had taught herself many advanced techniques over the years to help her mother deal with the stress of working multiple jobs, and nowadays to help a certain roommate deal with tensions stemming from things that made Nico jealous. As such, if she really put her weight into things, she could probably completely alleviate most of the smaller knots, if not a few of the larger ones as well.

However, it was almost time to turn in for the night and the group still had another day of fun planned as well as a long train ride back to Tokyo. She didn’t want to leave Maki too sore because as much as the tsundere’ish girl would deny it if confronted, she would want to participate in tomorrow’s activities. With this in mind, Nico decided to keep things on the lighter, more relaxing side. If Maki enjoyed the massage and its benefits, Nico could offer another one later that would leave the redhead unwilling to leave the couch the next day.

Of course, with that thought, Nico began imagining other things she could do to Maki that would leave her sprawled out on the bed, exhausted. For example, she could…

No. Nico shook her head. Focus. Now is very much not the time for that… We’re not even going out yet! … yet… She sighed with that last thought.

Having been lost in her own mind for so long, Nico suddenly realized that whatever conversation she had been holding with Maki had ceased, likely a while ago.

“Maki-chan?” Nico ventured quietly.

Silence.

Did she fall asleep? Nico smirked to herself before leaning over to confirm her suspicions. Sure enough, Maki’s eyes were closed and her breathing had slowed to a soft and steady rhythm. Good thing I had you drink beforehand. Nico glanced at the mostly empty bottle on the nightstand. Or else you’d really be sore in the morning.

Now Nico faced a dilemma, Should she wake Maki so she could get under the covers or find something else to use and let her sleep? Hrm… Nico eyed the closet door for a moment before getting off the bed to investigate. Thankfully, her suspicious proved correct as she located a small collection of folded blankets. As it was summer, she chose the lightest one and brought it back to the bed.

As Nico spread the blanket over Maki, she noted that it was not the right size for the humongous mattress and as such, it didn’t leave much room for her. She could, of course, just retrieve a second blanket, but… After a moment, Nico shrugged and slid in close to the other girl.

“Good night, Maki-chan.” Nico murmured as she pulled her share of the blanket over herself and closed her eyes.

Author’s Notes Continued in Followup Post

[oumiyuki]

Look At Me!

Summary: In which Honoka spends too much time with each and every other Muse member, and Nico snaps; demanding attention.

Pairing: Honoka x Nico

Genre: Romance, Slice of Life

Author Notes

Let me make it. Let me make it. Let me make it for Nico’s birthday..!!

..!

May you enjoy~! XD Nico-nico-nii~

Nico has always been a perceptive girl. She would notice the people around her; when they are messing around or in need. Lately…Nico finds herself noticing everything about the Leader of Muse, Kousaka Honoka.

There’s no surprise there as Nico loves Honoka. Nico loves her girlfriend and would notice every little detail from the change in ribbon for the day or the crumbs by her mouth. Nico would know.

The only “problem” Nico has with her attentiveness to the bubby and all-round adorable existence called Honoka right this moment would be that… Honoka’s attention wasn’t on her.

Nico grimaces from her centre seat in the clubroom as she watches her girlfriend leave her seat to drape herself all over Kotori with a whine for help. “Kotori-chan~ Help me with this math homework…~ And English homework…!” and under her breath, “If it’s Umi-chan, she’ll go demon coach on me…”

Kotori giggles and pats Honoka’s head. “Sure thing, Honoka-chan~”

“Yay!” Honoka cheers and gives Kotori a bear hug full of gratitude.

Seriously Honoka? I could teach you English or Math…

Nico stops midthought.

I can’t. But still!

It doesn’t stop with Kotori stealing Honoka’s attention from Nico. It never does.

Nico was sweaty and panting and taking a good amount of water into her system after Muse’s dance practice when she catches in her peripheral the gingerhead with Muse’s dance coordinator-and-instructor.

“Umi-chan, Eli-chan. I need a favour from the both of you…” Honoka began in a serious tone.

Nico’s ruby eyes never once left the trio, and Honoka mostly as she drank her water.

“I want to get additional dance practice with the two of you…If you don’t mind? I wanna get these dance steps right and as soon as possible!” Honoka moved her body, trying the steps once more but tripping a little.

More practice huh…

Nico stepped towards Honoka’s direction immediately when Honoka almost fell; even if Nico would be too far or too slow to catch Honoka, she wanted to lurch forward. But since Honoka kept her balance after, Nico sighed a sigh of relief.

Be more careful, Honoka!

“Ehehe…See?” Honoka rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly for making mistakes already.

Umi and Eli exchange a glance before nodding, agreeing to Honoka’s request as they were always proud and extra motivated by Honoka’s passion and determination when it comes to school idol activities. So they were more than happy to help Honoka with dance practice.

.

.

.

You know…

Nico capped her bottle of water loudly after the third day of Honoka having additional practice and a realization hit her.

You know you can look for me to be your dance partner right, Honoka??

“Are you okay, nya?” Rin looked over concerned at the loud noise and an annoyed looking Nico, though she thinks Nico tend to look annoyed.

Nico shakes her head. “I’m fine…”

The Universe Number One Idol stole a longing glance at Honoka working her hardest on the other side of the roof for a long time before heading home.

…

Do your best, Honoka.

Nico will still support Honoka with her decisions. And she doesn’t admit aloud very often or at all; but she admires Honoka’s tenacity as a school idol. Nico smiles on the way home that evening.

Studying subjects that Nico can’t teach Honoka; fine, she accepts that Kotori does a better job at it. Dance practice with the dance instructors themselves; fine, she loves being able to see Honoka working so hard anyways.

But!

The world isn’t kind enough to let Nico not be jealous and upset that Honoka was spending a lot of time with Hanayo and Rin instead of her.

On a nice day after school, “Let’s go for the all-you-can-eat sushi buffet, Hanayo-chan!”

That’s cute, Honoka. But I’m sure Umi will stop you-

“Let’s!” Hanayo cheers along and the two left with no Umi in sight.

Wait, what?

.

.

.

On another good weather after school, “Ramen tonight, nya!” Rin jumps up in her seat with an excited grin which the gingerhead matches.

“Yeah! Let’s challenge the mega-super-duper-ultra-large ramen bowl, Rin-chan!” Honoka was starry eyed and almost drooling at the thought of lots and lots of ramen to slurp down.

“Tension’s rising, nyaa~” Rin laughs with her fist pumped in the air and the two left the room.

Nico’s eye twitches each time that she’s going on dinner dates with Hanayo and Rin instead of her. Sure, she always complains about the carbs and calories…a lot. But that doesn’t mean Honoka should give up asking her out on food dates! She wouldn’t mind tagging along with her shenanigans with Hanayo and Rin! But don’t leave her out.

Who leaves the Universe’s number one idol out!?

Nico doesn’t want to talk or think about the case with Nozomi which she could not help but stalk Honoka the entire day to find out what’s going on; she didn’t really find out what Honoka was seeking Nozomi’s advice for. But she knows that Honoka spent a day with Nozomi instead of her. And asked for help from Nozomi instead of her.

From Nozomi!

Nico had enough. Nico couldn’t stand that Honoka’s attention, her girlfriend’s attention kept being stolen by another Muse girl! And Nico was feeling lonely. So, Nico gets Honoka alone in the clubroom and kabedons the gingerhead, glaring angrily at her girlfriend who was helpless and clueless to what’s happening.

Look at me, Honoka!

“N-Nico-chan..? Is something wrong..?” Honoka blinks consecutively, a worried smile playing on her lips.

Look at you! So clueless even now.

Yet still so cute. Was an afterthought that Nico could not help but have.

“Is something wrong…you ask? Of course there is! I am mad right now. Very, very mad right now.” Nico growls through gritted teeth as she bobbed up and down from trying to tiptoe to be taller than Honoka but to no avail. Nico gives up doing that after the umpteenth time.

“Why are you m-mad, Nico-chan? Did I do something..?” Honoka’s eyebrows furrowed in thought and her lips curled upside down in a frown directed at herself.

Nico sulks pointedly at Honoka for a long time as she observed how the gingerhead was apologetic and genuinely sad despite not knowing what she have done or not done. On normal days, Honoka’s puppy look could easily get Nico’s mind of steel to fall, so it wasn’t surprising that in this moment of their faces a mere 5 centimetres away, Nico’s anger crumbled mostly.

Seriously. When did it become so hard to stay mad at Honoka?

Nico sighs deliberately. “You have been spending too much time with other girls.”

“Other girls..?” Honoka repeated dumbly.

Nico kept the glare. “Yes. The rest of Muse, Honoka. You go on dinner dates with them. You give extra time to Umi and Eli. You hug Kotori like she’s your girlfriend not me. What’s that about?” Nico shook her head in disbelief, her twintail swinging from side to side from the force.

The only saving grace is…

“Only Maki isn’t stealing you from me.” Nico shifts on her feet to reposition herself, though her hands never leave the wall where she has Honoka trapped.

Honoka blinks once. Then there was a pause as her eyes shift sideways. Honoka swallows loudly. Nico took in all of these nervous reactions with her lips a set line.

Don’t tell me…

“Actually…Nico-chan… The truth is these days, I sleep with Maki-chan every day!” Honoka does a bow of apology which knocks her head into Nico’s before she pulls back to say sorry again but this time Nico leans back so she doesn’t get a head injury from Honoka’s clumsiness.

“What. Wait. What do you mean by that?!” Nico was bewildered by the sheer sentence.

Maki who happened to walk in on her seniors’ lover’s quarrel reacted the same way as Nico did; bewildered and affronted, but she actually knew what Honoka was referring to so she was relieved she wasn’t doing anything bad. “Honoka, don’t say things in such a misleading manner.”

“Maki!”

“Maki-chan!”

Maki twirls her hair and rolls her eyes. “Don’t look at me. Explain yourself.”

Nico returns her gaze on Honoka again. “Explain.”

Honoka sweatdrops but nods. “I have sleepovers at Maki-chan’s place to learn how to play the piano…”

“Why would you need to learn to play the piano?” Nico shook her head in disbelief; that the gingerhead has been having sleepover’s at Maki’s without telling her, and have been trying to pick up piano without telling her.

Is this because of her desire to be more useful again? Why can’t she understand that she’s doing more than enough for all of us already?

Honoka bites her bottom lip, once again organizing her thoughts and wondering if she should be entirely honest, which was a tough job considering how Honoka was always honest. “Because…”

Nico cocked her head to the side, getting rather annoyed that Honoka couldn’t just tell her everything right away. Was there anything she needed to hide from her Universe Number One Girlfriend?!

“Forget it. If you can’t tell me…so be it.” Nico turns to walk away but Honoka hurries to wrap her arms around Nico’s waist.

“Noooo, wait! I’ll tell. I’ll tell. Don’t get angry and leave me, Nico-chaaaaan.” Honoka sounded like she was on the verge of tears.

Nico tries to push Honoka away but turning around allowed her to see Honoka’s moist blue eyes. Nico pushes half-heartedly.

If you’re gonna tell, then hurry it up. It hurts me to see you sad, Honoka.

“I…I want to surprise Nico-chan on your birthday with a new song made by me…” Honoka sniffles sadly. “But…But Maki-chan told me it isn’t easy to compose music just because I can learn the piano…”

Well, duh.

“I really want to though! So Maki-chan agreed to teach me…That’s why I forcefully went on sleepovers at Maki-chan’s place…” Honoka lowers her head ashamed but her hold on Nico was strong.

So it was all your doing huh… Figures Maki wouldn’t attempt to steal you away from me, or agree to daily sleepovers.

“Nico-chan…I’m sorry for not paying you a lot of attention! But I just…wanted to do something special for my special someone…” Honoka’s small, soft and vulnerable tone, her shimmering blue hues, and that warm grip on Nico was more than enough for Nico to cave.

“Yeah…Yeah…” Nico sighs and looks away as pink dust her cheeks. “So do I get to hear it tomorrow? Or did you fail to learn it?”

Even without Honoka playing the piano for me on my birthday…I’d be happy with just spending time with her.

Honoka slides up a little and nods earnestly. “I can play Happy Birthday and Aishiteru Banzai now! At least…a bit of Aishiteru Banzai…” Honoka flashes Nico an excited but dorky smile; teeth on her bottom lip and eyes filled with silly pride mixed with adoration.

Nico huffs though her nose as she put her hands around Honoka’s back. “Again. Tomorrow..?”

Honoka realizes she didn’t answer Nico’s earlier question and she nods rapidly with a huge smile on. “It’s a date!” She pecks her girlfriend’s cheek before returning to that big, goofy ‘forgive me, I love you’ look.

Nico shakes her head, her own smile impossible to wipe off. “Yeah…It’s a date. And don’t you dare give a second to another girl on my birthday.”

Honoka embraces Nico with one hand and brought the other up in a mock salute. “I won’t!”

“Good.” Nico grins at Honoka before breaking into a laugh with her girlfriend.

My birthday is going to be a good one with Honoka.

Author Notes

I made it, yay! \^w^ My 100th LL!SIP story on AO3!

Nico-nico-nii~ hehe~ XD

I have a thousand and one story ideas I wanted to work on for Nico’s birthday, but my brain decided ‘no, no, let’s come up with a new one!’ so I was left with lesser time to complete this. XD hahas.

But well, that means more Nico stories next time ;D

I hope y’all enjoyed this! Maybe I’ll write a continuation where Honoka gives all her attention to Nico! ;D And her renewed lyric of Aishiteru Banzai: I love Nico version :P

Leave a comment if you like! (Let’s Nico-nico-nii the day with lots of smiles! :D that’s Nico’s and my wish for all of y’all ^w^//) hehe~

See you next story!

[adorablesapling]

I’ve decided I’m going to make 2 more trio version of Datte Datte Aa Mujou. Because I can.

[dimensiontripperhibiki]

Start Dash (13/?)

Eli smiled proudly as Honoka walked confidently onto the stage, toward the podium. She knew that she had made the right decision for Honoka to be student council president. And she knew that Honoka would be perfectly fine with Umi and Kotori as her partners. She knew that the two of them were waiting backstage, probably nervously watching Honoka. Honoka stopped in front of the podium and leaned forward to introduce herself. “Hello, everyone! I’m your new student council president. Most of you should know me as a school idol. My name is…” Eli glanced away as Honoka threw the microphone up. Her eyes rested on Nozomi who was watching Honoka with a sad smile on her face. She couldn’t help but notice that Nico looked a bit down too. She could understand why. It was their last semester. Fall had already begun. Soon enough their time as students at Otonokizaka High would end as would their time as school idols. They would go off to college most likely, or find jobs and take a gap year, something Eli was still pondering. She took her seat again, her gaze still lingering on Nico and Nozomi.

“What?” Nico muttered, noticing Eli looking at her. “You’re staring.” “Oh...nothing.” Eli quickly looked away, biting her lip. She didn’t know how to approach the issue. She was still struggling with it a little bit herself, struggling with the idea of what to do after their final year. She turned her attention back to the stage, which Honoka was being ushered off of. “I think Honoka-chan was a good choice.” Nozomi said, leaning forward slightly with a small smile. “But I think you might have been a little biased.” “Considering you’re sleeping with her.” Nico added with a knowing smirk. “It’s not like that’s why I chose her!” Eli spluttered. “Oh? Then why are you blushing?” Eli watched Nico’s ruby eyes twinkle. “I can’t believe you can see color so clearly now.” “I’m Yazawa Nico.” Nico said smugly. “I can do the impossible. But...with the career I’m pursuing I’m no longer following my dream to be an idol.” Nozomi frowned. “You’ll do find pursuing public relations. Besides you’ll still help idols.” Eli nodded her agreement. “Nozomi is right. It doesn’t have to be the end of everything idol related.” Nico managed a small smile at that. “Maybe you’re right.” She took a deep breath, steeling herself. She knew she was lucky to be in the position she was in. She hadn’t met her soulmate exactly but she had met someone who was just as good, if not better, than her soulmate. And she still had a year left of being a school idol. She looked at Umi who was standing nervously next to Honoka and Kotori and felt a surge of happiness. Maki’s eyes were fixed to the stage too, watching intently as Kotori smiled next to Honoka and Umi. Kotori seemed to be so happy since she had decided to stay. Maki was relieved at that. The main thing which had stopped her from asking Kotori to stay was the idea that Kotori would be miserable if she did stay. If she missed out on the opportunity she had longed for. “They look happy, nya.” Rin spoke from her right as if sensing what Maki was thinking. “I’m glad Kotori-chan stayed.” “Me too.” Maki mumbled while Hanayo nodded emphatically in agreement. “It wouldn’t have been the same without Kotori-chan.” Hanayo said quietly as she stared up at the stage. “All nine of us have to be in Muse. Until…” “Until the end of the year.” Rin added when Hanayo trailed off. Maki’s brow furrowed at the comment and she glanced over at Rin who suddenly looked a bit down. “That’s almost a year away. We don’t have to think about that right now. Let’s just enjoy the time we have in Muse...with all nine of us.” “Maki-chan is right.” Hanayo said in agreement though even she looked a bit upset at Rin’s comment. “We don’t have to worry about it yet.” “I know that.” Rin sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly. “But I don’t want to be Muse without the third years, nya…” Maki frowned. “You’re saying we should...disband?” “Maybe. I-I don’t know.” Maki let out an irritated sigh. She didn’t exactly want to think about that. “Let’s just talk about it later, okay? Everyone’s leaving anyway, we should go.” Rin grumbled at the response but nodded her head and got up to follow. She supposed it wouldn’t help to talk about it now. It wouldn’t change the fact that the third years would be graduating soon enough. ---- “We could eat in the student council room if you want.” Eli suggested with a small smile as she watched Honoka happily eating her bread. “If you have work to do.” “Kotori-chan said she might go over some things.” Honoka said, shaking her head. “I think she said she was going to look for Maki-chan first so they’re probably making out in there. Or worse.” Eli’s eyes widened in surprise. “Honoka!” “What?” Honoka smirked, leaning into Eli’s side. “It’s not like we haven’t made out in there before. The door has a lock.” “I know but…” “Honoka-chan!” Honoka and Eli looked up in time to see Hanayo, Maki and Nico running toward them. As soon as the three reached them, Hanayo collapsed to her hands and knees, breathing heavily. “Is it impossible for you to stay in one place?” Nico asked breathlessly. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you!” Rin chimed in, nodding her head. Eli’s brow furrowed in confusion as she looked between the three of them. “What’s going on?” “Honoka-chan!” Honoka glanced to her right at the sound of Kotori’s voice. She was surprised to see Nozomi, Kotori and Umi running toward them too. “What’s happening?” Nico took a deep breath. “There’s gonna be...another…” “Another Love Live!” Kotori finished for Nico as she reached the small group with Nozomi and Umi. “Anju-san text me to tell me.” Hanayo said, her eyes wide with surprise. “Because the first contest, won by A-Rise was such a success, there will be a second contest! And it’s going to be bigger. The arena will be bigger and the videos will be uploaded online with a live stream available! The groups will be invited based on regional ranking and the regional winners will get to compete in the nationals!” “So we have a chance to compete in the nationals!” Nico exclaimed excitedly. “But...if the popularity right now doesn’t matter that means we’ll have to go up against...A-Rise.” Umi said, her shoulders slumping slightly. The rest of the group visibly deflated too. “We don’t have to participate, do we?” Honoka asked innocently, speaking up for the first time. “I don’t think we have to participate.” “WHAT?!” The rest of Muse exclaimed in shock, their eyes wide. “Honoka…” Eli took a step forward, her brow furrowed. “What do you mean by that?” “I just mean...we don’t have to do it, if we don’t want to.” Honoka answered with a slight shrug of her shoulders. “You’re really not interested?” “You can’t be serious!” Nico exclaimed angrily as she moved closer to Honoka. “This is Love Live we’re talking about! The dream of being a school idol! You’d jump off a cliff at the chance.” Honoka gave a nervous laugh as Nico gripped her arms. “Y-You think so? “Nico.” Eli warned, narrowing her eyes at Nico. Hanayo heard the familiar tone of her phone receiving a video call. Checking it, she quickly grabbed Rin’s bag and pulled her laptop out. “W-Wha…?” Rin watched in shock as Hanayo opened her laptop and typed in her password. “How do you know my password?” “I have my ways.” Hanayo answered as she linked her phone to the orange laptop. She accepted the video call and four people came into view. Tsubasa smirked on the screen. “Have you heard the news? I’m sure Anju told her future sister in law...in law.” Hanayo watched as Miyu’s face turned red. “Hi, Miyu-chan.” Tsubasa rolled her eyes. “Hey, you could have acknowledged me.” “R-Right, sorry!” Hanayo blushed just as brightly as Miyu. Before she could say anything else though, the door behind the four girls on the screen was thrown open and Hibiki stumbled into the room. “I’m okay!” Hibiki exclaimed, grimacing. “Did I make it?” “Just about.” Anju said in amusement. “So did you get my text, Hanayo-chan? You didn’t answer.” Hanayo sat down next to Honoka while the rest of Muse gathered around, focusing intently on the laptop. “Yeah. Sorry, I got it. I wanted to tell everyone else.” “So you all know.” Tsubasa summarised with an approving nod of her head. “That’s good.” Hearing a soft sigh from Honoka, Eli took her girlfriend’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Honoka looked away from the laptop, thinking. “So are you going to enter?” Anju asked brightly. Nico scoffed. “Obviously.” “We don’t know yet.” Honoka said, glancing at Nico. “We’ll have to think about it.” Nico growled in annoyance. “What is there to think about?! Everyone else wants to. Right?” She looked around at the other members who all nodded, save for Honoka and Eli. “Eli?” Eli bit the inside of her cheek. She wanted to but she didn’t want to pressurize Honoka by saying so. “I-I guess.” Anju watched the interaction carefully before she noticed Tsubasa open her mouth to say something. She pressed her hand over Tsubasa’s mouth to keep her from pressurising the other leader. Erena cleared her throat. “Whatever decision you make, we will respect, Kousaka. Please take your time but remember the competition starts in two weeks.” Honoka nodded, her mouth set into a grim line. She didn’t want to let everyone else down but she wasn’t sure she wanted to compete either. “Thank you, Toudou-san.” “I’ll call you later, Miyu.” Hanayo said softly, placing her hand on the lid of the laptop in preparation to shut it. “Bye Hibiki!” Rin exclaimed quickly, just before Hanayo shut the laptop. “Honoka-chan?” Nozomi pressed gently, looking toward Honoka. “You really don’t want to compete again?” “I-I don’t know.” Honoka mumbled, looking down at her lap. “I just need some time to think about it, that’s all. I don’t know what I want to do. I’m sorry, Nico-chan.” Nico huffed in annoyance but she visibly calmed down when Umi placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She looked up at her girlfriend, taking comfort in the calmness of Umi’s expression. “Fine. I don’t understand but fine.” “I’m going to call Saya before our break ends.” Nozomi said, getting to her feet. She briefly touched Honoka’s shoulder, earning herself a small smile from the leader of the group before she moved away. “We’re going too.” Rin said before she tugged Hanayo away. “Come on, Nico.” Umi took Nico’s hand and with a slightly concerned look toward Honoka she walked away with Nico too. Kotori noticed Eli glance at her pleadingly. Reluctantly, she nodded her head in understanding. She wanted to stay, for Honoka, but she knew that Eli was the best person for Honoka to talk to. “Let’s go, Maki-chan.” “Are you okay?” Eli asked quietly, placing her hand on Honoka’s shoulder. Honoka let out a soft sigh. “They’re disappointed. I don’t want to cause more trouble for anyone, I just...I don’t know how I feel about competing in Love Live again.” Eli nodded though even she couldn’t understand that. “Maybe you shouldn’t think of it as competing. Maybe you should think of it as another chance for all of us to perform together again. The last chance for some of us.” “Right.” Honoka mumbled, her shoulders slumping slightly. “You, Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan are going to be graduating soon. I guess that’s why Nico-chan was angry with me earlier.” “She’s just upset. She loves Muse, even if she wouldn’t admit it.” Eli said with a small, knowing smile. She knew that Nico cared, maybe more than all of them but she didn’t like to show it. “She doesn’t want to give it up yet.” Honoka bit her lip. She didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t sure what she should do. “I’ll support you no matter what you choose.” Eli said gently, lightly resting her head upon Honoka’s shoulder. “But I think you might regret it if we don’t try this one more time.” Honoka closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. “L-Let’s do it.” She said after a moment, opening her eyes as she looked to Eli. “You’re right. I don’t want to regret anything. And I don’t want to let anyone down. I know this means a lot to everyone.” “It does.” Eli answered honestly, relief washing over her. “We can do this, Honoka.” Honoka smiled and leaned in, pressing her lips gently to Eli’s. “Thank you, Eli-senpai.” ---- Rin stared at her laptop screen, her chest tight with anguish. She knew it wasn’t a good idea to read the comments on Muse’s video but it had popped up and she hadn’t been able to resist. Most were positive comments but there were more than a few comments about how boyish she was. One even saying that she was ugly. She blinked away tears forming in her eyes. She knew she shouldn’t let the comments bother her but she couldn’t help it. The comments in front of her played upon her own insecurities. She was boyish. “You ready to go?” Rin jumped in surprise at the sound of Hibiki’s voice. She quickly wiped at her eyes before she turned to see her girlfriend walk into the room. “W-What?” “We have a date. The movies, remember?” Hibiki said in amusement. “Are you ready to go?” “Oh…” Rin bit her lip and glanced away. “I-I don’t think so. I’m not...feeling well. Maybe we could skip the movies this time? I-I think I’ll just get some sleep.” “Oh.” Hibiki frowned in response. “You seemed fine before I went into the bathroom...did something happen?” Rin shook her head. “Rin.” Hibiki stepped forward, her gaze fixed to Rin’s face. “You’re not sick, you’re upset. What happened?” “Did you feel that?” Rin mumbled, her shoulders slumping. She couldn’t keep anything from Hibiki, it seemed. “No. I just know you.” Hibiki’s lips turned up slightly. “And I can tell something’s upsetting you. What’s wrong.” “Just…” Rin sighed, crossing her left arm over her stomach to grip her other arm. “I read some...comments. Saying that I’m boyish and...ugly.” Hibiki raised an eyebrow before her gaze flicked to Rin’s laptop. Her stare hardened and she moved over, quickly switching it off before she shut the lid. “You’re not ugly. You’re a work of art. An artist’s eye never looks at anything that isn’t beautiful.” Hibiki stepped forward and gently cupped Rin’s cheeks. “I wouldn’t lie to you.” Rin frowned softly. “I still don’t want to go out.” “We don’t have to.” Hibiki said quietly. “Besides, I don’t want anyone to look at you. You’d be taken away from me if people saw how breathtaking you are.” Rin felt her face warm at the answer. “You’re the only person who sees me like that.” “That’s not true. Without this...soulmate thing people would be lining up to be with you.” Hibiki said with a roll of her eyes. “I told you, I wouldn’t lie to you. People do look at you...like I do. I’ve seen people do it before.” “You have?” Rin asked in surprise. “Of course.” Hibiki said with a slight scoff. “Not that I like seeing them looking. You’re my girlfriend.” Rin gave a soft chuckle at the response as well as the slightly annoyed look on Hibiki’s face. “I know you like how I look, I just like…” “Feeling like a girl sometimes.” Hibiki finished for Rin. Her hands fell from Rin’s face and she wrapped her arms around her waist instead. “And that’s okay. Don’t listen to those stupid comments.” Rin managed a small smile. “I know I shouldn’t.” “They’re idiots.” Hibiki confirmed. She leaned up, gently pressing her lips to Rin’s before slowly drawing away. “Let’s just stay home. I don’t want to go out anyway. Besides...I can help you feel like a girl.” Rin felt a familiar tingle of excitement course through her as Hibiki smirked up at her. “Yeah?” “Yes.” Hibiki breathed out before she kissed Rin again. “What do you think, hotshot? Mind if I take the reins?” Rin shook her head, smiling against Hibiki’s lips. It seemed that no matter what happened, Hibiki could always find a way to make her feel better. She kissed Hibiki again, letting the shorter girl lead her toward the bed. ----- Umi/Nico scene - Nico thinking about moving away. ----

Rin gritted her teeth, her feet hitting the tarmac under her hard as she raced around the track. As comforting as Hibiki’s reassurances had been she still couldn’t get those comments out of her head. She knew that a lot of people saw her as boyish and she knew that to some degree that was her fault. She didn’t want to be seen that way but she had done the things she did, dressed the way she did for so long that it would be embarrassing to just change. A part of her wanted to change, at least sometimes and it was frustrating that she couldn’t. She cried out suddenly as pain shot up her leg. She stopped short, jumping up and down on one leg as she clutched her right leg. “Ow, ow, ow!” Her eyes smarted with tears as she dropped to the ground, still clutching her leg. It throbbed intensely, waves of pain cursing through it. “You okay? Looks like you have a cramp.” Rin looked up, squinting against the sunlight, lifting her free hand to shield her eyes so that she could see the girl standing over her. She didn’t recognize the blonde standing over her. The girl had short hair, just a little bit longer than Rin’s and dark brown eyes. She realized for the first time that the girl had spoken in english. “Huh?” “Um…” The girl knelt down next to Rin, pointing at her leg. “Does it hurt?” Rin narrowed her eyes, taking a moment to realize what had been said. She nodded silently. “Can I…?” The girl held her hands up and nodded to Rin’s leg. She waited for a nod before she reached out, pressing her fingers into the back of Rin’s calf. “It’ll feel better in a minute…” Rin cleared her throat, the pain in her leg dulling. The girl looked up, their eyes locking and Rin watched as the dark indigo eyes widened. After a moment they quickly darted away. “Uh…” Rin hesitated a moment before she continued in English. “I’m Hoshizora Rin. What’s your name?” The girl looked up, relief clear on her face. “Emily Steinberg. Sorry, you said your name is...Hoshizora...san?” Rin couldn’t help but smile, caught off guard by the girl’s puzzled expression. “You can call me Rin.” “Rin.” Emily repeated slowly, nodding her head in response. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. So her soulmate’s name was Rin. She bit her lip, moving her hands away from the other girl. “So I um...I can see color. Kind of. Since I looked into your eyes. Can you?” Rin frowned at the girl and shrugged her shoulder. “Uh...my English isn’t very good?” “Oh.” Emily frowned at the response. “Um…I…” She pointed to herself and then to her eyes. “Can see…color?” She made a explosion gesture with her hands, trying to articulate the suddenness of what had happened. Rin blinked at Emily for a moment. When the blonde girl pointed at her, her eyes widened in shock. “Wha..?! ME?!” She pointed to herself. Emily nodded, relieved that she had managed to get her point across. Her Japanese really was terrible. “Yes.” Rin slowly shook her head. That couldn’t be. She already had a soulmate. Surely she could only have one. “I-I have to go.” She mumbled, getting to her feet. Thankfully her leg felt a lot better now. “Um…” “Wait, wait!” Emily quickly stood up too, a worried look on her face. “Um...m-matte?” “I have a soulmate.” Rin said, her stomach sinking at the look on Emily’s face. She didn’t want to hurt the girl. Emily tilted her head in confusion. Rin sighed and glanced over her shoulder. As much as she just wanted to leave she didn’t want to leave Emily without an explanation. She went for her phone from the pocket of her hoodie and stepped forward, unlocking it. She pulled up a picture of herself and Hibiki and held it up for Emily to see. “My girlfriend.” “O-Oh.” Emily’s brow furrowed in confusion. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...assume anything.” Rin blinked. “What color are my eyes?” “Light green.” Emily answered without hesitation, staring into Rin’s eyes. Rin swallowed thickly and took a step back. She didn’t know how she was going to tell Hibiki what had happened. She noticed Emily smiling slightly. “W-What? Why are you looking at me like that?” “No reason.” Emily looked away, her cheeks flushing though it clearly took a lot of effort for her not to look at Rin again. “Sorry I acted so...forward. I just transferred here last week and I don’t have a lot of friends here and I thought...nevermind.” Rin frowned. The girl’s Japanese was broken but she understood her. “You transferred a week ago and you’re already on the track team, nya?” Emily smiled broadly. “Nya?” She saw Rin blush and chuckled softly. “Yes. A couple of girls from my class asked me. I used to run track at my old school in America. I lived in Connecticut. But I prefer soccer.” Rin felt herself relax slightly. “Why did you move all the way here?” “Ah...complicated.” Emily answered with a slight shrug of her shoulders. She paused for a moment, trying to think of what else to say. She didn’t want to stop talking to Rin but she felt like the girl would leave if she stopped talking. “Are you in a club?” “I’m…” Rin hesitated, biting her lip. “In a school idol group.” “Really?” Emily asked in surprise. “Like you sing and dance? That kind of thing?” Rin gave a sheepish laugh. “Yeah. Like that. Um...I should probably be going, um...Emily.” “Will I see you again?” Emily asked hopefully. “Maybe.” Rin answered hesitantly. She offered a small smile as she backed away. “We both go to the same school, right?” “R-Right.” Emily watched as Rin turned on her heel and walked away from her. “Wow…” --- Rin cleared her throat as she watched Hibiki browsing through her phone. She had been trying to gather the courage to bring the subject up with her girlfriend for the past hour but she hadn’t quite managed to. Hibiki looked up from her position lounging on the bed. “What’s up?” “Um..” Rin nervously bit her lip for a moment, her eyes darting briefly away. “Do you think it’s possible to have more than one soulmate?” “No.” Hibiki answered without hesitation. “I don’t think it is. I’ve never heard of it anyway.” Rin let out a sigh of relief. She had been worried that it was possible and that the girl had started seeing color because they were soulmates. That she hadn’t noticed herself because she could already see color because of Hibiki. “Right. So um...we said we wouldn’t keep secrets from each other, didn’t we? Even if the truth hurts.” Hibiki sat up, letting her phone fall to her side. She was concerned now, especially with Rin nervously fidgeting. “Yes…?” Rin swallowed thickly. “So there’s this...new girl at school. I met her yesterday. And I think she might be um...into me? To put it lightly…” Hibiki nodded, frowning. “Go on…” “Uh...she has dark blue eyes and natural blonde hair.” Rin continued nervously. “You certainly have a type.” Rin took a deep breath. Now for the hard part. “She saw my eye color.” “You’re saying...that’s impossible. She saw colors burst when she looked at you? You’re sure it wasn’t anyone else?” “I was the only runner!” Rin exclaimed, distressed by the situation. “A-And she wasn’t looking at anyone else. She was only looking at me.” Hibiki was silent for a moment. “I’ve heard...of one-sided soulmates maybe. Maybe you are her soulmate. It basically just means you’d be perfect for her, doesn’t it?” Rin nodded mutely. Hibiki let out a sigh. “If she can see color because of you she’s not going to stay away from you. She’ll want to get to know you. What’s her name anyway?” “Emily.” Rin answered softly. “She transferred from America.” She watched Hibiki closely but her girlfriend’s expression gave nothing away. “What are you thinking?” “I...don’t know.” Hibiki said honestly. Her thoughts were jumbled and racing. “Sounds complicated, I guess. Um...have fun with that?” “Hibiki.” Rin frowned at the response. “You’re not going to say anything else? I might have another soulmate and that’s all you’re going to say?” Hibiki twitched at the remark and she gritted her teeth. “I still don’t think it’s possible. She better keep her hands to herself though, that’s all I’m saying.” Rin rolled her eyes as Hibiki picked up her phone and went back to whatever she had been doing a moment ago. “You’re not jealous?” Hibiki let out a slow breath. “Rin, I’m trying to keep myself from hurting this girl. If you think there’s a reason I should be jealous, I’ll stop trying to hold myself ba-” “No, no, no. I-It’s not like that…” Rin said holding up her hands. Hibiki stared at her phone screen, not wanting to meet Rin’s eyes. “You’re my soulmate, Rin. You opened up my world. Of course I don’t want someone else to take you. I just don’t want to think about it and I just...hope she gets the picture and this passes. I’d die without you, you know that. Can we please just stop talking about this?” Rin nodded, guilty forming in her stomach at the sight of Hibiki’s hurt expression. “Right, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.” “I’m not upset.” Rin smiled a little. “You think I’m special.” “More than that. You’re my soulmate, you idiot.” Hibiki mumbled, putting her phone down again. “My only soulmate.” “I’m not going to do anything, I promise.” Rin moved toward Hibiki, resting her head on the girl’s shoulder. “I’m not a cheater. Besides, I love you.” “I know. I trust you.” Hibiki took Rin’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’m not saying I don’t. It’s just the idea of losing you freaks me out.” “You’re not going to lose me. I promise.” Rin pressed a gentle kiss to Hibiki’s cheek, trying to soothe her. Hibiki nodded, trying to ignore the anxious feeling niggling at her. ---- Emily looked up at the sound of footsteps approaching her. She felt a flutter in her stomach when she saw Rin turn the corner, walking down the row of lockers. “Oh…” Rin paused a couple of lockers away. “Emily. Um...hi.” “Hey.” Emily said with a small smile. “Didn’t think I’d see you so soon.” “I-I wasn’t looking for you. I just thought I’d go for a run…” Rin paused as Emily tugged her school shirt off. Her eyes moved down of their own accord and widened at the sight of the blonde girl’s refined abs. She gulped. Hibiki was toned but she didn’t have abs. “Relax, I was just heading out too.” Emily said with a shrug of her shoulders. “It helps to clear my head.” Rin blinked in surprise. “Your Japanese is a little better.” “I’ve been practicing.” Emily beamed at the praised. “I’m still a little…” her brow furrowed. “Rusty.” Rin couldn’t help but chuckle at the small injection of English at the end. “I’ve been practicing my English too.” “So you can talk to me?” Rin wanted to say no. She wanted to deny that she was interested in Emily but the blonde looked too hopeful. “Ah...yeah, nya. I mean yes.” Emily tugged her shirt on over her head. “You don’t have to do that, you know. I mean...stop saying nya. It’s a tick or something, right? I think it’s cute.” Rin blushed and glanced away, rubbing the back of her neck. “I should probably go.” “I thought you were going for a run?” Emily asked, raising an eyebrow. “If you want, I’ll run in the opposite direction. That way we’ll only have to pass each other now and then.” “W-What…? It’s not like I’m avoiding you or anything, nya...argh, I mean…” Rin groaned and sat down on the bench behind her. Emily hesitated for a moment, glancing around before she went to sit next to Rin, straddling the bench. “Do you want to...talk about it? I know this must be...weird for you. If you want to ask me anything you can.” Rin sighed softly and cast a sidelong glance at Emily. “Can you see color now? Permanently?” Emily nodded silently. “Because of me?” Rin prompted, lowering her voice in case anyone overheard them. “You’re sure?” “I’m completely sure.” Emily answered sincerely. “I’ve been seeing color ever since I met your eyes.” Rin leaned forward, holding her chest. She could feel Hibiki’s insecurities, even now. “I have a girlfriend. I have my soulmate already.” “I get that.” Emily answered thoughtfully. “But that doesn’t stop us being friends, does it?” Rin bit the inside of her cheek. She couldn’t promise their relationship would stay at just friendship, that was the problem. “N-No…” Emily heard the emotional tone of Rin’s voice and leaned in, hugging her from the side. “Let’s just...see how it goes, okay? If you want to stop being friends, if...it gets weird for you, we can. Let’s just start with going for a run together.” Rin let out a slow breath. Emily was too nice. It didn’t hurt that the girl’s body felt good pressed against her. “So you don’t like me...like that?” Emily leaned back, her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “Well...you know, you’re um...you’re cute. And pretty. Obviously. But I don’t know you very well so…” Rin frowned at her. “Pretty?” “What?” Emily rolled her eyes at the confusion in Rin’s voice. “Nobody’s ever called you that before?” “Well my girlfriend has.” Rin answered slowly. “Not anyone that wasn’t her.” “That’s surprising.” Emily said thoughtfully. She got up, offering a small smile. “So do you want to go for that run?” “Um…” Rin hesitated for a moment before nodding in response. “O-Okay. I just have to get changed.” “Right. I’ll see you out there then.” Emily said, figuring Rin wouldn’t want her to stay while she undressed. “Right…” Rin watched as Emily left the locker room, inadvertently taking in the sight of her butt as she walked away. “Butts are nice…” When she was alone, she took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. She tried to tell herself that she wasn’t doing anything wrong but her stomach felt twisted with guilt. It had to be wrong to pursue anything with Emily. She looked to her bag, sitting next to one of the lockers. Maybe she should just leave without going out to run with Emily. That would make everything much simpler. She already had a soulmate, she didn’t need to pursue anything with another ‘soulmate’. “Damn it…”

She struggled with her decision for a moment before she got up and approached her locker to get changed. ---- Hibiki sighed heavily, propping her cheek against her closed fist as she stared down at her homework. She had been hoping that Rin would come over to save her from being bored but her girlfriend hadn’t even text her after school. The thought made her uneasy, especially after Rin’s confession a couple of days ago. Just as she was about to go back to her homework she heard her phone ring and quickly reached out to grab it. She saw Rin’s name on the screen and quickly answered the call, lifting the phone to her ear. “Hello?” “Hi, Hibiki-chan.” Rin’s voice sounded on the other end of the line. “I just finished my run and I thought I would call you.” “Good.” Hibiki said with a small smile. “I didn’t know if I would hear from you today. Is everything okay?” “I just...wanted to tell you something. I-I know you said you don’t want to hear about her but I would feel bad if I didn’t tell you and...um...I went running with Emily.” “Oh.” The smile that had lingered on Hibiki’s lips slipped away and she felt a tightness form in her chest. She cleared her throat. “So you two are friends now?” “M-Maybe…but just friends.” “Friends and soulmates. Sounds familiar.” “Hibiki…” “Right, sorry.” Hibiki ran a hand over her face, sighing in exasperation. “I guess that was a bit bitter, huh? Just...am I not enough, Rin?” “No!” Rin exclaimed loudly. “I mean...yes, you are. It’s not that. Don’t say things like that.” “What am I supposed to think?” Hibiki asked, her shoulders slumped in defeat. She felt a lump form in her throat and her eyes prickled with tears. “You’re off with some girl who’s claiming to be your soulmate. I’m your soulmate! I’m…” “I love you.” Rin whispered, her own voice taut with emotion. “I’d die without you, Hibiki.” Hibiki bit down hard on her lip, so hard that she accidentally drew blood. “I don’t know what you want me to say.” “I don’t know either.” Rin admitted hoarsely. “I love you. But...I feel like I can’t stay away from her.” Hibiki closed her eyes, gritting her teeth together. “Maybe...if you um…” She took a deep breath, trying to force her words out. “If you take some time to figure out what you want. Like...we take a break.” Rin inhaled sharply. “Break up? What? No! I don’t want that!” “Not break up, just...I’ll give you some space.” Hibiki reasoned, even as her eyes misted over at the thought. “And you can figure out this thing with...Emily.” “Nya, no!” Rin exclaimed loudly. “I want to be near you. I can’t function without sleeping next to you, nya.” Hibiki was silently, biting her lip once more. “Please.” Rin pleaded on the other end of the line. “Nya, understand I don’t want us to fall apart. We...we did that! We’re bonded now. Please, she isn’t special, she just made me happy because someone besides you thinks I’m pretty. You’re still the one I’m in love with. And you always will be.” Hibiki felt the dull pain that lingered in her chest sharpen and knew immediately that it was Rin’s more than her own. “Okay, no space then. If you don’t want it.” “I don’t.” Rin said quickly. “D-Do you?” Hibiki let out a soft sigh in response to the question. “No.” “I’ll come over now.” Rin said in relief. “I love you, Hibiki. I really love you.” “I know.” Hibiki whispered,blinking back tears. “I’ll wait for you.” “I’m coming nyaow!” Hibiki ended the call and placed her phone back on the desk in front of her. She stared at it for a long moment, her thoughts racing. She couldn’t help but worry that Rin would get closer and closer to Emily and that she would end up losing her. --- “I’m worried that Rin likes someone else!” Hibiki squeezed her eyes shut as she blurted the words out. She didn’t even want to say them. She felt like if she voiced her fears it would mean they were more likely to come true. Not only that but she was worried how Hanayo and Miyu were going to react to what she had said. “Seriously?” Miyu gaped at Hibiki in shock. Hanayo on the other hand, scoffed, though she did look equally as surprised. “No way. Rin-chan would never like anyone besides you. You two are practically married. There’s a reason everyone calls you the married couple. Why would you even think that anyway?” Hibiki sighed, her shoulders slumping. She had figured that was the reaction she would get. “She met a transfer student...who said that she can see color after looking into Rin’s eyes. Like she’s her soulmate or something.” Miyu frowned in confusion. “But you’re Rin’s soulmate.” “I know!” “Is it possible to have more than one soulmate?” Hanayo asked, perplexed by the idea. “Maybe it is. Maybe it just hasn’t happened before because it’s rare enough that you find your actual soulmate...even if it does seem to happen a lot around here…” “I-I don’t know.” Hibiki groaned miserably and let her head fall into her hands. “Rin said that she doesn’t think she can stay away from this girl. What am I supposed to think?” “Rin-chan wouldn’t cheat on you.” Hanayo said confidently. “I don’t think Rin would cheat on anyone but especially not you. She loves you. You have to be sure of that at least...aren’t you?” Hibiki nodded silently in response. She knew that Rin loved her. That wasn’t the problem. “Maybe she saw someone else briefly before she saw Rin?” Miyu suggested hopefully. “Maybe it isn’t what she thinks? I don’t think it’s possible for someone to have two soulmates. And maybe Rin is just reading too much into it? Maybe she’s just worried that she won’t be able to stay away from this new girl because she doesn’t want to do anything to hurt you.” Hanayo nodded emphatically. “Things between the two of you have always been kind of...simple and easy. This complicates things for her.” “Yeah…” Hibiki mumbled unhappily, leaning back in her seat. “I’m not saying she’s going to cheat on you.” Hanayo said insistently. “I don’t even think she has feelings for this girl she’s met. She’s just...confused and worried that she’s going to hurt someone. Rin-chan wouldn’t want to hurt anyone, especially you. Trust me. I know her almost as well as you do.” Hibiki managed a small smile at that. She knew Hanayo was probably right. “I know. I just don’t know what I would do if I lost her. I can barely remember what my life was like before she was part of it. I don’t know what I would do if I had to go back to that.” “You won’t have to.” Hanayo said softly. She reached out and gently touched Hibiki’s hand, trying to soothe her. “Rin-chan isn’t going to leave you. Nothing’s going to change. Just talk to her and tell her how you feel. She’ll understand. It’s not as though she hasn’t worried about losing you before. Hibiki’s brow furrowed at the thought. “That’s not going to happen. There’s nobody better for me than Rin.” “I know that. Everyone else knows that. But she has her doubts sometimes.” Hanayo replied with a small smile. “Just like you have yours. You need to talk to her, Hibiki. Trust me. Only Rin-chan can tell you how she really feels.” “I know.” Hibiki took a deep breath, steeling herself. “Thanks, Hanayo. Miyu.” Hanayo nodded with a small smile. “I won’t tell Rin-chan you said anything to me about this. If she needs me she’ll come to me when she’s ready.” “Thanks.” Hibiki said gratefully. “I’ll go and talk to her now. I’ll see you two later. Miyu lifted her hand in a wave as Hibiki quickly left the living room, obviously heading for the front door. Indeed, she heard it open and then shut a moment later. ---- “Onee-chan, I’m heading out for a bit!” Yukiho called as she slid her shoes on. “Don’t forget to watch the shop like mom asked!” “I will!” “And don’t get distracted by Ayase-san!” “I’ll try not to!” Honoka answered though the way she giggled right after made Yukiho doubt that. Yukiho rolled her eyes and got up, leaving the house. She closed the door behind her before she turned and jogged down the path. She needed to get out of the house. She needed to figure out what was going on with her and why she could suddenly see color for apparently no reason. One moment she had been wandering past the track at school and the next moment her world had exploded in color. She was freaking out to say the least. She couldn’t get the blonde from that day off her mind either. Their eyes had only met for a second across the field while the blonde had bent down to help Rin but the brief meeting of their eyes had changed everything. Yukiho was embarrassed to say that she had run away. She knew it wasn’t a ‘normal’ reaction to seeing one’s soulmate for the first time but she had panicked. Afterwards, she hadn’t been able to think about the girl without feeling a knot of worry. She hadn’t even been able to tell Honoka about her. Yukiho turned the corner at the end of her street, her pace picking up a little. She wasn’t sure what she was doing but she felt like she needed to go back to where she had seen the girl. Maybe she would be there again. Yukiho felt herself collide with someone, knocking them both off balance. She felt strong hands grip her arms as she fell forward and heard a sharp intake of breath before she landed on top of the person she had bumped into. “Crap, are you okay?!” Yukiho looked down at the girl in surprise, confused by the fact that she had spoken in English rather than Japanese. “H-Huh? Wait, you’re…you’re her!” The blonde girl’s brow furrowed for a moment. “Emily.” She said, pointing to herself. “Um...let me help you.” “S-Sorry.” Yukiho stuttered, realizing she was still on top of Emily. She scrambled to her feet and watched as the other girl got up too. “I um...I saw you at the high school a few days ago. Running track?” Emily was silent for a moment before she nodded her head. “I joined the track team. Do you go to the school?” “Me? N-No, I’m in middle school.” Yukiho said, blushing. “Um...I-I don’t really know how to say this but I looked into your eyes the other day and now I can see color!” Emily’s eyes widened in surprise after a moment as she took in what Yukiho had said. “What?!” “I-I don’t…” Yukiho leaned in, kissing Emily quickly before she turned and ran away. Emily gasped as everything suddenly brightened around her, the colors becoming clearer and more distinct. “W-Wait!” She called out. It was too late though. Yukiho had already disappeared from view. Emily groaned and pressed her hand to her forehead. “What the hell…?” ---- “Emily?” Emily looked up, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw Rin walking toward her. “Thank you for coming.” Rin nodded in response, pausing in front of Emily. She almost hadn’t met up with her, if she was honest. She had felt too guilty about what it would do to Hibiki. “Why the auditorium?” Emily shrugged her shoulders. “I figured it would be empty after school. And I wanted to talk to you in private. About...something important.” Rin nodded, her heart in her throat. She fidgeted awkwardly, hoping that Emily wasn’t about to confess her feelings or anything. “W-What is it?” Emily closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. “I made a mistake!” She blurted out. She opened her eyes just to see Rin’s reaction. The other girl merely looked confused. “W-When I said you were my soulmate. I’ve realized I must have looked at someone else. I-I ran into her yesterday and she kissed me and...and I don’t know who she is exactly because she ran away but...I know you’re not my soulmate. I’m so sorry.” “Seriously?” Rin gaped at Emily in shock. “Y-Yeah, I’m sorry, I…” Emily trailed off as Rin moved forward and hugged her exuberantly. “Thank you!” Rin laughed with relief as she hugged Emily. “W-What…?” Rin leaned back, tears at the corners of her eyes. “I was so worried about Hibiki...my girlfriend. I didn’t want to do anything to hurt her and I thought that you being my soulmate would make it impossible for me not to hurt her. Thank you for telling me.” Emily guiltily bit her lip. “I really caused a lot of trouble for you, huh? I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean to.” Rin shook her head. “It’s okay, it was just an accident. I would have thought the same if I was you.” Emily managed a small smile at that. “We can still be friends though, can’t we? Even if we’re not connected?” “Sure.” Rin answered hurriedly. “But tell me what the girl looks like, nya!” Emily blushed at the question. “Small.” “Nya?!” “She’s a third year middle school student.” “NYAAA?! What school?” “Rin…” Emily grumbled awkwardly. “I don’t know. She has red hair and ocean blue eyes.” Rin’s eyes widened. “Um...do you know why she was walking to the high school?” “No. But she lives in the small shopping district near aki-ba…? My guardian owns an antique shop in that area. I live upstairs in her apartment.” “Nyaaaa, Honoka-chan is going to kill me!” Rin exclaimed, wide eyed. “Huh?” Emily asked, tilting her head in confusion. “Who is...Honoka? Wait, is that my soulmate? Do you know her?!” “N-No...Honoka-chan isn’t your soulmate.” Rin sighed heavily. “Honoka-chan is my friend and...she’s in Muse too. I think her younger sister is your soulmate.” “Really?” Emily asked excitedly, her heart leaping in her chest. “Do you know where she lives? Can I meet her?” “Uh...you might want to take it a little bit slower.” Rin said with a soft chuckle as she placed her hand on Emily’s arm. “I know you’re excited but this is um...probably all new to Yukiho.” “Yukiho…” Emily said slowly, trying the name out. She nodded solemnly at Rin. “Right, sorry. Um...she did seem a little bit scared. Maybe that’s why she ran away. Maybe she’s scared of me. Argh, why do I always make such a bad first impression?” “You don’t.” Rin said, watching Emily mentally kick herself. She felt sorry for the girl. “Once she gets to know you, it’ll be fine. I promise. I’ll um...talk to Honoka-chan and maybe I’ll be able to introduce you to her. Emily smiled brightly at the idea and nodded her head. “Speaking of meeting people, nya…” Rin said carefully. “Maybe I could introduce you to my girlfriend. To show her you’re not a threat.” Emily’s smile slipped. “Ugh...I don’t know, Rin. She probably wants to kill me.” “She doesn’t, I promise!” Rin exclaimed, clasping her hands together. “Please? Please, Emily?” “Fine.” Emily grumbled, rolling her eyes. “If you really want me to.” “I do. Oh, I should be going. I need to...talk to Hibiki. I’ll text you later!” Rin said brightly. With a quick wave she turned and bolted toward the auditorium doors. Emily sighed. She was still confused but she was glad that Rin was happy at least. ---- “This is like our second date.” “And it’s another double date.” Nico sighed with a roll of her eyes. “What the hell? How did we get into this?” Umi smirked knowingly in response. “You wanted to get a moped since you just got your license, senpai.” Nico blushed furiously. “Don’t call me that!” She glanced over at Saya and Nozomi, frowning. Saya seemed to be talking with the owner of the moped, looking for a good bargain. “How do you think she’s doing?” “Um…” Umi hesitated for a moment until Nozomi turned to her with a small smile. “Nozomi seems to think it’s going well at least.” “Good.” Nico said with a relieved sigh as she turned to the moped. “It’s a beauty though! Red and sleek. And I’m gonna drive you around, wherever you want to go.” Umi smiled softly at that. Nico seemed genuinely excited about the moped even though she had been embarrassed to accept the money offered to her by Kaiyo. “Well this date is original at least. It’s not like any other date I’ve been on.” “You’ve been on one date.” Nico pointed out, raising an eyebrow. “Unless you’ve been on other dates you haven’t told me about?” “Of course I haven’t.” Umi said, shaking her head. “I’ve only ever been on dates with you.” “Good.” Nico smiled smugly and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She was about to say something else when she noticed Saya walking over to her, an equally victorious look on her face too. “So?” “Got it.” Saya tossed a set of keys to Nico who barely managed to catch them. “It’s all yours. Wanna follow me to the restaurant? I’ll take Nozomi, you can bring Umi, okay?” “R-Right.” Nico stuttered, wide eyed. Saya nodded and walked away with Nozomi. “Think she’ll be okay on that?” “I think so.” Nozomi said even though she looked a little wary. “Maybe you should have taken Umi-chan instead?” “And let you on someone else’s bike?” Saya scoffed and curled an arm around Nozomi’s waist as they walked. “Hell no.” Nozomi chuckled softly at the comment but she couldn’t help but worry about Umi and Nico. As she got onto the bike behind Saya she glanced over at Nico to see her staring in confusion at the helmet in her hands. “Give it to your girlfriend!” Saya called over, cupping her hands in front of her mouth. She glanced briefly over her shoulder to make sure Nozomi was wearing hers. “Right. Sorry, Umi.” Nico mumbled, passing the helmet over to Umi. Saya rolled her eyes and started the engine of her bike. She waited until Nico and Umi were situated before she drove off down the road. Nozomi sighed softly, her grip tight around Saya’s waist. She didn’t pay much attention to where they were going, more focused on whether Nico was keeping up. Thankfully she was. They pulled up outside a restaurant and Nozomi got off the bike along with Saya. “This is the place you chose?” Nico asked in disbelief as she joined Nozomi and Saya along with Umi. “Isn’t this a bit...pretentious? I don’t even think I’m dressed for this place.” Saya sighed and rolled her eyes in annoyance. “I told you, I’m not taking my girlfriend on a date to an arcade.” Nico growled under her breath. “At least it would have been fun. This place looks boring.” “Boring for a kid maybe. But me and my girlfriend are-” Saya cut herself off, taking a deep breath. As much as Nico riled her up she had promised she would try to be nice. “Uh…” Nozomi piped up awkwardly, her hand resting gently on Saya’s arm. “Let’s go in and eat and then we can go home, okay?” Umi cleared her throat and took Nico’s hand, hoping to calm her. “Maybe it would be nice to just sit down and eat together. Right, Nico?” “If you say so.” Nico mumbled though she decided to keep herself from snapping back at Saya. She didn’t want to ruin the date for Umi after all. “Let’s just go in and find a table.” “I actually reserved a table at the back.” Saya corrected Nico. “Of course you did.” Nico mumbled, gesturing for Saya to go ahead. When she did, along with Nozomi, Nico and Umi followed them inside. “Please be nice.” Umi pleaded softly as they walked along behind Saya and Nozomi. “She’s Hisa’s friend. And...I guess, my sister’s too. I don’t want her to hate me.” Nico huffed. “Fine, I’ll try.” Umi breathed a sigh of relief at the agreement. They reached the table and Nico took her seat first, followed by Umi. “Oh, I’ll get it.” Saya said quickly as Nozomi took off her jacket. She rushed to pull Nozomi’s chair out for her, almost stumbling in the process. “Klutz.” Nico remarked with a roll of her eyes though she paused, noticing that Umi was grinning at Saya and Nozomi. “Seriously, Umi?” “What?” Umi muttered, her voice low. “You have to admit they’re cute together.” “If you say so.” Nico mumbled as she watched Saya take her seat next to Nozomi, a sheepish look on her face. She frowned slightly, wondering if Umi wanted that kind of treatment. She worried her lower lip. She wasn’t sure she knew how to act like that. “So what do you think of your bike, Nico?” Saya asked, hoping to ease the tension. “You must be happy with it.” “I am.” Nico said, perking up a little. She didn’t feel the need to say anything else though. “If you have any questions you can just give me a call…or call Nozomi. I’m home most of the time anyway.” Saya said with a small smile as she glanced at Nozomi. “Sure.” Nico answered simply. Thankfully the sudden silence that followed was cut short as the waitress came over to take their orders. She placed her order of udon, not listening to the others place their own orders. She was still too concerned with Umi. She quickly shook her head when the waitress walked away, focusing on the conversation. “Wanna share desert?” Nozomi asked with a slight smile as she took Saya’s hand atop the table. “Of course.” Saya answered brightly, giving the hand in her own a quick squeeze. Nico shook her head and glanced at Umi, noticing that she was blushing slightly. “Oh!” Saya exclaimed suddenly, breaking Nico from her thoughts. “I forgot to ask...Izetta is coming over on Friday night. Is it okay if she stays in the spare room? I haven’t gotten to spend much time with her lately.” “Sure.” Nozomi answered brightly. “Want me to make myself scarce? I can stay over at Elichi’s.” “No, no, no.” Saya vehemently shook her head. “I want you there. Why wouldn’t I want to spend time with my two favourite people at the same time?” Nico frowned in confusion. “Why can’t you just stay at your own apartment? Why Eli’s?” Nozomi froze at the sound of Nico’s voice, as if she had forgotten she was there. “Oh...I don’t have my apartment anymore. I um...moved in with Saya 2 months ago.” “WHAT?!” Nozomi grimaced at the volume of Nico’s voice. “I was going to tell you. Everyone from Muse. I only really told Eli. And...Chrom-kun, Uni-chan, Raven-kun and Hisa-san.” “My friends helped us move in.” Saya said hastily before Nico had a chance to get the wrong idea. “It’s not like you were the last to know.” Nico exhaled a breath. “Moving a little bit fast, aren’t you? What about university? When you graduate?” “Oh. I already know I’m not moving away.” Nozomi answered simply. “I’m going to Tokyo U...probably. If not, I’ll commute to whichever university I end up studying at. Are you thinking about...moving away?” Nico felt her stomach sink at the question, especially when she noticed Umi look at her with a hint of worry. “W-We’re not talking about me! All I’m saying is you might be moving a bit fast.” “I’ve been with Saya for over a year. And I love her.” Nozomi answered, squeezing Saya’s hand. “Why would we wait to live together?” “I-I just think you’re moving too fast, that’s all.” Nico said indignantly though she didn’t have much of a response to Nozomi’s question. She knew that Nozomi was right after all. Nico wished that she herself was more confident about what she would be doing in the future. “Let’s just talk about something else, okay? It seems like all we ever talk about now is relationships.” Umi shrugged as Nozomi shot her a worried look. She didn’t know what was going on with Nico either. ---- “Stop being so stubborn, Nicocchi.” Nozomi groaned in exasperation as she sat down next to Nico in the library. “Just take the entrance exam for Tokyo U. It doesn’t hurt to have a backup plan, does it?” Nico sighed, shooting Nozomi an exasperated look as she glanced up from studying. “You’re only saying that because you want me to go to Tokyo U.” “I bet I’m not the only one who wants it.” Nozomi said pointedly. “What about Umi-chan? She must want you to stay, doesn’t she?” “I...haven’t really talked to her about my plans.” Nico said with a slight grimace at the thought of doing so. “So I don’t know. I think she’d support me though.” “Probably.” Nozomi said with a roll of her eyes. “Even if she wanted you to stay close to her she’d tell you to leave. Sound familiar?” Nico scoffed. “We’re nothing like Maki and Kotori.” “Really? You two weren’t even soulmates and yet you became something like soulmates. Didn’t you?” Nozomi asked, frustrated that Nico wasn’t seeing reason. “And you know that Umi would always put your happiness first. Just like you would for her?” Nico sighed. “Why does that sound like a question?” “Because it is. At least consider applying to Tokyo U. Take the entrance exam. What’s the worst that could happen?” Nozomi asked hopefully. “You decide you want to stay? That has to be better then moving around all of the time, right?” “All of the time? It would only be…” Nico trailed off, noticing that Nozomi was glaring at her. “Fine. Okay. I see your point. I’ll think about it. But not because you asked me to. For Umi. That’s all.” “Good.” Nozomi said, beaming. “You really love her, huh?” “Of course I do.” Nico muttered, feeling her cheeks warm at the admission. “I don’t give a crap that she’s not my soulmate. It doesn’t matter to us. We’re still connected. And we will be even if I leave to go to university.” “Alright, alright. I get it.” Nozomi said with a roll of her eyes. “I just figured it would be nice for the two of you to be close, that’s all. At least ask her how she feels about it before you make a decision. Just because long distance will work for you, that doesn’t mean it’s going to work for her too.” Nico sighed but begrudgingly nodded her head. She knew that Nozomi was right, at least in a sense. “Oh, I have to go and meet Saya.” Nozomi said suddenly, quickly getting up. “I’ll talk to you later, Nicocchi.” “Bye.” Nico said softly, her thoughts shifting to Umi. She looked down at the books spread out in front of her. As much as she wanted to be sure that she was going to the right university she didn’t want her relationship with Umi to suffer because she had to move away. She sat there for a few minutes, mulling over her decision until she felt a hand touch her shoulder. She flinched and looked up, ready to tell the person to back off but relaxed when she saw it was Umi standing next to her. “Hey.” Umi said with a small smile as she sat down next to Nico. “Studying for exams?” “Something like that.” Nico said with a soft sigh as she glanced over at her books. “At least until Nozomi interrupted me earlier. I can’t focus now.” Umi stared at Nico contemplatively for a moment. “Why?” “Just thinking.” Nico nervously worried her lip for a moment before speaking again. “I’m trying to figure out which college to go to. Whether it’s here in Tokyo or...a little further away. Is that going to be a problem for us?” Umi’s expression flickered for a brief second before she schooled her features into a neutral expression. “Um...no. If you want to move away to go to university, I’ll support you. Whatever you need.” Nico sighed heavily. Nozomi had said that Umi would say something like that. “Yeah, that’s what I figured. Would you want me to stay though?” Umi’s brow furrowed in confusion. “It’s not my decision to make. I would prefer to be with you, of course. But you shouldn’t let me hold you back from what you want to do. Besides we can...see each other during holidays. And we’ll talk on the phone, right? Don’t worry about me, Nico. I can take care of myself.” Nico swallowed thickly but nodded her head. She knew that Umi was putting up a brave front. “Right. I’ll...think more about what I’m going to do and I-I guess I’ll tell you when I make up my mind?” Umi forced a smile to her lips. She really didn’t want Nico to go but at the same time she couldn’t hold her back from what she wanted. “Good. Do you know what Nozomi and Eli are doing about university yet?” Nico shrugged. “Last I heard from Eli she was planning to take a gap year or something. I think she might have changed her mind now though. As for Nozomi, I think she’s going to Tokyo U. So she can keep living with Saya.” “She lives with her?” Umi gaped at Nico in surprise. “Nozomi didn’t tell us that. How long has she lived with her?” “A couple of months.” “She’s so mature…” Umi mumbled to herself in awe. “That’s what I...wait, what?” Nico frowned at Umi’s response. “Don’t you think it’s a little too soon for them to be moving in together?” “Not really.” Umi answered sheepishly. “They’ve been together over a year now. Besides, they lived next door to each other. It would have been practical for them to move in together.” Nico considered that for a moment before nodding her agreement. “Yeah, I guess you might be right.” “Maybe we could...move in together too. Maybe after I graduate?” Umi suggested hopefully. “If you move, I could go to the same university as you after I graduate. I know that means we’ll still be apart for a year but…” “Yes.” Nico said quickly. “Let’s do that. I don’t want to break up or anything just because I might be moving away. It won’t be forever.” Umi nodded, feeling slightly more optimistic at the thought. At least whatever distance ended up being between them wouldn’t be forever. “Come on, let’s go home. You can study tomorrow, okay?” Nico opened her mouth to argue but stopped at the last second, deciding that she could stop studying for at least a night. If she really was going to leave she wanted to spend as much time as possible with Umi before she did. She got up, letting Umi take her hand and tug her out of the library. --- Hanayo glanced around the living room as she waited for Chrom and Miyu to come back in from the kitchen. She could hear them laughing about something. It seemed like Anju heard as well as she was sitting on the couch with a fond smile on her face. Hanayo bit her lip. If she was honest, a year ago she would never have imagined that she would start to spend her time with her girlfriend, her girlfriend’s brother and her girlfriend’s brother’s girlfriend but she had found, much to her surprise, that she wouldn’t change a thing about it. Chrom had been nothing but open and accepting of her and seemed to think of her as one of the family now. Anju herself has taken on somewhat of an older sister role. “M-Miyu, I told you, don’t…” “Onii-san can see color!” Miyu blurted out as she walked into the room holding two bowls of popcorn. A flustered Chrom followed her, carrying drinks for the group. “Miyu, I told you not to tell them yet.” Chrom sighed heavily, exasperated by Miyu ignoring him. He glanced at Anju out of the corner of his eye, trying to gauge her reaction. “Uh...yeah, I can see color.” Anju stared at Chrom in shock. “Because of…?” She paused, pointing at herself. Chrom gave an awkward laugh and rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah. Pretty sure, anyway. It’s not constant or anything but...yeah.” “Let’s not talk about makeouts and enjoy family time!” Hanayo laughed. “Miyu and I make out all of the time, it’s fine.” Miyu blushed. “Hanayo!” “What…? Oh yeah, I’m usually on top.” Chrom cringed at the comment. “Too much information, Hanayo! I don’t need that mental image!” “Sorry, Chrom-san.” Hanayo said with an apologetic smile as Miyu walked over to her, squeezing onto the chair with her. “But I’m happy for you. That you can see color now.” Chrom cleared his throat as he looked to Anju. “We’ll figure it out.” He said, noticing that she looked a little unsure of herself. “It doesn’t change anything.” Anju nodded, breathing a soft sigh of relief. “Whose turn is it to choose the movie?” “Mine.” Miyu piped up. She looked toward Hanayo with a small smile. “Don’t worry, I chose something you’ll like.” Chrom groaned. “When’s it going to be my turn again?” Miyu rolled her eyes. “You forfeit your turn when you chose another scary movie. You know Hanayo doesn’t like them.” “Right, sorry.” Chrom mumbled sheepishly. “What are we watching?” “Rent.” Miyu answered, pressing play. Chrom let out an exaggerated groan. “Seriously?! You know, I actually don’t feel too well, I might have to...” “Stay.” Anju said, tugging Chrom back down as he started to get up. “It’ll be fun, I promise.” “Fine, if you want.” Chrom answered with a roll of his eyes though his voice lacked any malice. He settled back on the couch, his arm brushing against Anju’s as he focused on the movie. “But I’m picking the movie next time.” TBC

[musemercenarystart]

Gunshot One: The Life of a Mercenary Girl

Word: 15k  Gotta upload this here since I need too, reviews is appreciated Anyways have a wonderful Xmas and a Happy New Year Everyone

FF.net

Ao3

Now that I really think about it, the world isn’t that of a cheerful and great place to live in if you get to see its dark face, therefore I will take on the sole job of cheering everyone on and cleaning the dirt made from the worst humans at the same time till I can’t smile anymore.

-Sweet Magnum              

Operation ‘Tropical Party’

19:00: Somewhere in the Jungles of the Amazon

ETA: One hour

Joint Mission: De μ's/Muse(μ's) and A-RISE – Hostage Rescue

“Okay, this is the plan.”

An orange haired girl with azure eyes had said this using a microphone connected to a headphone, loud noises coming from both sides since a few hours ago due to powerful engines sustaining the vehicle she rode on in the air.

The turbulence shook the sea water plane due to the heavy winds, the air was freezing since they were high above the sea level and was flying though jungles in the Amazons while it was night time.

“Umi-chan will scout the area with Kotori-chan as support when we arrive at the designated place.”

She spoke again while looking to her right to see a blue haired girl sitting on the copilot seat next to her, she was wiping a combat knife with a white cloth, only to stop and release a sigh when she met the pilot’s gaze.

“Honoka, I have no problem with the plan but aren’t you pushing Kotori so much? The last mission was a dangerously close call for us.”

The orange haired pilot looked back to see the girl called Kotori with an apologetic and guilty face to her ashen haired comrade and one of her best friends.

“Sorry Kotori-chan….” With eyes that was close to crying, her voice sounded muffled under the microphone.

“Its fine Honoka-chan, I was careless during that mission when I thought that there was no enemy left.”

Smiling wryly, she replied with her high pitched voice while recalling what happened during the deadly mission last time. Sweat forming in her smooth forehead while reloading her blue Barrett.50 cal. sniper with its magazine.

“No, it was my fault for ignoring those who went past me.” Umi instinctively replied when she saw the pitiful smile of Kotori.

“Not at all, as your leader… I made unforgivable mistakes that can cost all our lives!”

Honoka’s voice was stern when she interrupted but also held a sense of responsibility with a tint of worry for her group.

The trio became silent and the atmosphere became somewhat unbearable.

“Ahem, Honoka… Sorry for breaking the atmosphere but what will be our mission today supposed to be?”

Coughing to get some attention from the emotional trio, a blonde with freezing cerulean eyes that makes them think of the Russian Winters in Siberia had stared at them while sitting on chair with a wryly smile on her face, seemingly sorry for interrupting the romantic drama happening between her juniors causing them to blush together.

“Ahh~ Elichi… You know that it’s rude to disturb people when they are about to make out. Look, you killed the mood for them… do you also want it to happen to our quality time?”

Intruding on the conversation was a girl with jade jewel like eyes and  Royal Purple colored hair tied into loose twin tails wearing a gas mask that is used by the S.A.S Forces of the United Kingdom loosely on the left side of her head and had a smugly grin on her face.

Hearing that statement, the four of them blushed so hard that the cold air outside felt like a breeze in summer. Honoka nearly left the control stick of the plane to stand up to protest against the big breasted devil only to sit back hurriedly since the plane tilted a little downward out in the air while Umi’s hand dropped her combat knife near her foot due to her body twitching and Kotori was just sitting there frozen with a cramped smile on her face.

Eli gained her sense of time and pouted but quickly changed her expression to a stern one.

“Nozomi, it’s not the time for jokes.”

“Yeah, I am sorry but I couldn’t help it since they were acting so cute just now~” Grinning, the jade eyed girl apologized to the blonde.

“So…” A cold voice resounded in the seaplane.

The voice came from a girl who is the shortest of the group in terms of height, petit in frame but is also one of the deadliest spoke, her voice carrying a bit of annoyance and confidence making them turn to look at her. Tying her hair into twin tails with a red ribbon, her ruby like eyes that reminded them of the expensive jewels only owned by the richest fucks looked at them and it was empowering to the point of forgetting how to breathe for air.

“Can we please continue with the discussion of the plan and mission?”

She continued while putting six magazines of her guns in their holders around her thighs and lower abdomen, the glint in her ruby eyes intimidated her comrades. Noticing that they stiffened up, she coughed to clear the awkward atmosphere around them, her facial expression softened and she smiled with her usual foolish grin while scratching the back of her head with her leathered gloves.

“Sorry guys, did I scare ya?” She flashed her toothy grin once again.

Glad to see the raven haired girl back to her cheery self, the group breathed out with relief.

“Nico-chan is so scary when she is serious or moody…” Honaka had said that will piloting the plane steadily.

“Looking at her eyes is like meeting with the Grim Reaper himself…” Umi added while picking her fallen Combat Knife and started to clean it again with the white cloth in hand.

“I like Nico-chan when she is in her cute Idol persona!” Kotori’s high pitch voice went in to Nico’s ear causing her head to turn away and cross her arms together, a faint pink blush appeared due to the sudden complement she received from Kotori.

“H-hmph! Of course I am the cute Super Idol Nico-Nii~ Nico-chan~, who is so popular around the world! It’s a given!”

She replied casually, but if people where to see this Nico that was wearing an attire which is made for killing and the Nico of the Idol Universe, the people will not believe them and will just deny the reality if it were to happen but really… She is a renowned world level Idol, Actress, Singer, Model and many more to put to the list.

“Haah, that was so scary…” Eli sighed again in relief as if a burden was lifted of her body.

Nozomi was also so scared but decided to resist the urge of covering her body behind Eli and turned those feelings into mischievous thoughts of wanting to get revenge on Nico.

“Oh~ Nicocchi is so cute~ I need to give you a hug and some groping as payback for making me terrified~”

Inching closer to the small girl, Nozomi groped the air with her hands opening and closing in intervals.

Sensing that Nozomi is on her Fondle Thirst mode, Nico got ready for the usual situation that will happen in few seconds.

“No~~~ Stay away from me Nozomi!!”

Nico reacted with the usual routine to Nozomi’s teasing and was caught in Nozomi’s arms where she started to grope the small girl’s breast in an excited matter, the others laughing when seeing those two.

It was a really a peaceful atmosphere although it will be changed to a bloody struggle in an hour.

The reason why this former school Idols was now aboard a seaplane on some distant place while carrying weapons that can take the life of people with ease was because they were Mercenaries, trained to kill, sabotage, rob important packages, spy on enemy organizations, rescue VIPS and many other dangerous missions.

This is also their ninth mission as mercenaries.

If people where to see their attire now, they will think that the once famous school Idol group of Japan called μ's was just cosplaying for a photo shot involving Army Uniforms. Well…. They really looked like cosplaying…. With all the cool black customized S.W.A.T like Uniforms, wearing sports bras under the uniforms and customized Beret caps for army personnel with the accessories and weapons all fitting the group’s individual tastes of fashion.

“<Captain Honkers! Come in! Come in, Captain Honkers! Nya!>”

Breaking the usual gag, a voice like that of an excited cat resounded throughout the group with their earpiece for communication hearing the caller perfectly fine under such weather.

“Geez!!! Rin-chan! Stop with the ‘Captain Honkers’ already!”

Puffing her cheeks with the blush of shame plastered on her face, Honoka complained while hearing the giggles of their fellow comrades from behind.

“Rin, how are the others?” Umi asked while sheathing her combat knife to the rear of her right thigh in the knife holder and rechecked her other knives and daggers.

“<Tsubasa-san and the others are fine! We successfully entered their territory with no problems encountered Nya!>”

What Rin referred here as Tsubasa was a girl from an another super famous group of idols named A-RISE where she is the leader and was the former rivals of μ's back on their school idol days.

“I see….” Nico sighed from relief when she heard Rin’s report.

“Ara, Nicocchi~ Who did you sigh for? Was it for Tsubasa-chan and the others or was it for Maki-chan specially?”

Nozomi grinned and began teasing Nico again while still groping the tiny breast causing Nico to be flustered.

“Hu-huh!? Of course it was for everyone else!! And stop groping me already!! Let go~~”

Kotori just kept on being silent while seeing those two playing with each other.

“Rin? How is the situation?”

Eli asked Rin through the communicator while reloading her slightly purple colored PKP Pecheneg magazine with its large bullets.

Rin’s group was on standby in a village near the enemy base.

“<Kayo-chin is eating the rice and seemed to be satisfied with it, Nya!>”

Eli face palmed and so did the others except for Nozomi and Nico since they were busy.

“It’s good that Hanayo-chan is enjoying the rice there but don’t forget that we have a very important mission here.” Honaka asked Rin while sighing.

Saying that, Honoka brought out a huge tobacco cigarette that makes people think of the classical Mafia movies or the American General stereotype where that say “God damn it!” when something unfavorable happens.

Taking it to her lips, she kept it there and waited for Rin’s reply.

“<Oh… Sorry Captain Honkers… Back to the point, we succeeded in making an escape route Nya!>”

The tobacco cigarette had nearly fallen of Honoka’s lips when she heard her ridiculous nickname again.

Honoka thought that this was not the best time to bring her tobacco since so many jaw dropping moments might happen so she put it back to its coffee colored pack.

“I see, then should we continue with ‘that’ plan.” Umi concluded, ignoring the tears forming in Honoka’s eyes and the pouting face she was making while checking her ashen colored customized M16A4 and its grenade launcher.

“I agree, if we want to make a fast get away then we should definitely go with that plan.” Eli consented with Umi’s decision.

“Hmph! At least they are fine.” said Nico while adjusting the sleeves of her mercenary uniform.

Nico was really worried for Maki since they fought a little when they left each other side even if she did not show it on her face although it was so cherry from Nozomi’s molesting techniques.

Nozomi also had stopped molesting Nico and readied her slightly blue P90 submachine gun then sat next to Kotori who was deeply thinking about something.

She noticed that something was wrong with Kotori and she whispered into her ear in a not so loud voice.

“Kotori-chan, what’s wrong…?” Without letting the others know what the topic was about, Nozomi asked her worriedly.

“Ah… It’s nothing… Nozomi-chan…” Kotori had answered in a weak voice.

“Are you sure? You have been acting strange since we left, you know?” Nozomi asked again.

“No, I am fine… Sorry for worrying you.” said Kotori while putting bullets in the magazine of her second sniper rifle, an orange Remington RSASS and smiled at Nozomi.

“Hmm, if you say so…” Nozomi was not really convinced but acted like that to let her comrade feel more relaxed.

“Can I suggest something Kotori-chan?” Nozomi asked a new question again.

“Yes, what is it?”

“Can you use your Remington RSASS as your main this time instead of your Barrett for this mission?”

Nozomi took the free hand of Kotori and stared at her comrade’s honey colored eyes while giving of the pressure that says “You can’t say no”.

Kotori agreed but thought that it was unusual for Nozomi to be demanding on how the covering fire will be used, she then shifted her eyes to her comrades.

Nico was readying her scarlet Mini-Uzi guns which was her pride and then her Night Sky colored sheaths which had the drawings of Ravens flying that contains a double deadly medium length Katanas while Honoka switched her seat with Umi and was now preparing her silver revolver magnum handgun which boosted of its high power then she went to put a magazine on her beloved brown colored customized SCAR L rifle continuing to talk to Rin on a separate radio line.

“By the way Kotori….. I know that I am not good with guns and you are a sniper rifle expert but why did you bring two snipers?” Umi asked what was on Nozomi’s mind out loud while looking at the mirror on the windshield.

Recalling that now, everybody’s attention shifted to Kotori and her weapons.

“Huh!? Ah!!” Realizing that by a second later, Kotori’s face flushed red and her eyes became teary due to making a beginners mistake of bringing two snipers when you only really needed one.

It really seemed that Kotori was really out of it which made Nozomi sigh, she really did want to point that out but couldn’t and Umi had just blurted it out without hesitation making Nozomi relieved that someone asked that.    

“I am so sorry everyone! I made such an amateur mistake!” Kotori bowed her head in apology worried that her careless mistake might disturb the flow of the mission.

“Its fine Kotori, we did not start the mission yet so you don’t have to worry about it.”

Eli tried to comfort the little bird and Nico just approached without showing any signs of emotion making Kotori slightly nervous.

Upon reaching her, Nico chopped her head with her hand and Kotori reacted with an “Ow” and her eyes became teary while the raven haired girl showed a smile like that of a senior who genuinely felt that the situation couldn’t be helped.

Lowering her head level to the little bird while nearing her face so much that their noses touched, Nico looked at the eyes of Kotori while putting a hand at the back of the other’s head.

“Listen Kotori, mistakes are used as a learning tool so that you will become better at what you do and not to lose confidence. Like what have Eli said, we did not start yet the mission so relax.”

Being looked at those irresistible fiery red jewels like eyes at point blank made Kotori gulp so hard while her blushing did not help either and the color of her face reminded the group of a certain pianist’s hair color.

Seeing that, Nico also blushed and hurriedly pulled away while Nozomi on the side of Kotori made a smug face finding amusement to the situation.

“Ni-Nico-chan, thanks for the encouragement and…. that was pretty bold of you…”  Kotori said it while shyly smiling.

“It-Its normal for the Senior to help her Juniors, right!? And stop smiling Nozomi! It’s creeping me out!”

Nozomi was smiling while the Honoka and Umi blushed at the boldness of Nico and their mouths were gaping wide while twitching at intervals.

Seeing that, Nico coughed and looked at Honoka who was still at a trance.

“Enough of that! Just leave a sniper behind Kotori and Honoka... the task briefing please!”

Saying the last part of her sentence with a commanding tone, Honoka was released from her delusions and was glad that she had kept her tobacco at its pack.

“Oh, right!” Coughing, she looked at some files on her right hand.

“Okay, the mission this time involves saving a hostage from a group of armed kidnappers. These kidnappers were part of a former Special Forces of some countries and they are mixed together. They are very well trained so it might be very dangerous if we were to be found and battles where to happen when we did not even reach the VIP.”

Honoka returned to her leader-like attitude and announced their mission to the group.

“The name of the hostage is Alice Wallcroft, daughter of the S.A.S Commander of the country Great Britain. She is in the army with the rank of Captain in the British Air Force and is also a renowned pilot of her country.” The leader of the group continued on with explaining the profile of the VIP they are going to rescue.

“The client who is Alice-san’s father is also a business partner to Nico-chan’s family so let’s not disappoint them.” Honoka concluded.

“Heh, a business partner to Mistress Yazawa it seems.” Umi remarked.

The Mistress that Umi referred to is Nico’s mother and the boss of the all-powerful Yakuza in Japan that deals with the black market, terrorist groups in other countries, Mafia’s in Italy and many more which involves the dark part of society.

“A collection of former Special Forces from different countries, eh? It would become dangerous for us if it is true but hmm, wouldn’t that be the same for them too? To work with each other being former enemies and all…” Nozomi idly commented on the unusual enemies they are having this time.

It’s true that they fought with different kind of opponents but this was a first for them.

“I think that they quit being government dogs due to the low salary they get and became underground mercenaries for hiring.” Eli replied looking slightly sour when she deduced what likely happened for those poor souls.  

“So it’s just rescuing some rich Ojou-sama again…” Nico sighed looking uninterested.

Well, it’s understandable for Nico to sigh since it’s her nineteenth time doing a mission and the tenth one involving her saving a VIP. Although it says on the mission logs of her family’s database that it was her nineteenth one, it was actually more than that. She is the only person in the group who has the most experience, kills in this hell like job, trained to kill since birth but only to stop when she entered the Otonokizaka Academy which she started her School Idol career and is also an Ojou-sama from the said Yakuza family.

“If it’s like that, then I want a distraction…. something flashy and cool….” Nico smiled like a devil scheming for something horrible to happen.

“<If that’s what our Cute Devil Nico-sama wants, then we’ll give you the greatest distraction you want!>”

A voice resounded again in their earpiece, one that they will recognize anywhere if heard once since her singing was always played in the streets of Akihabara. She was giggling while saying that, making Nico blush and gasp.

“Tsu-Tsubasa-san! Wh-What are you saying and how did you listened to us!? ” Stuttering like a fool, Nico just embarrassed herself even more.

“<I just took my chances and turned on the radio.>” A giggle was heard when the voice replied back.

It was Tsubasa who interrupted making Honoka’s face brighten instantly.

“<Just infiltrate from the eastern side of the base where our little captain is held captive while we do our part of the agreement.>”

“<Captain Honkers! We are also ready! Just say the word and we will be there Nya!>”

Rin had said that while a sound like that of pumping a shotgun was heard on the other side of the radio.

This mission was a joint one between Honoka’s group De μ's and Tsubasa’s A-RISE, both mercenary groups are famous in the dark side of society.

“Roger that, we take your offer gratefully and accept it.” Umi readily accepted the help from them since she knew that they could be trusted, it was also their fourth joint mission together.

They really trusted each other to the point of blindingly charging into the front lines just to save the other if the situation ever calls for it.

Umi smiled while shifting the control a little to the right, the water plane veered right and was lowering in attitude in preparations for the landing near the area of operation.

“Tsubasa-san, we will arrive in thirty minutes so get ready~” Honoka said that cheerfully to her admired co-leader.

Cutting off the communication with Rin and Tsubasa, the water plane neared its landing area near the rivers.

Thirty minutes have passed and the water plane landed near the shore of one of the Amazon Rivers, Kotori and Umi went on ahead and the group will follow after ten minutes since it is to see if there are traps laid in advance by enemies and also to find a good snipping position for Kotori.

“I think that we waited enough.” Honoka released the safety of her assault rifle while saying that.

“I just hope nothing goes wrong…” Eli rechecked her equipment’s function one more time.

“Is everyone ready, we are going to move out!!” Honoka once again spoke but this time in a commanding manner.

“Yes!” Nozomi and Eli replied with an attentive tone.

“Yawn…. Guess that my fatigue from my Idol Job is catching up.” Nico stretched her arms in the air and yawned.

“<Honoka? Can you hear me?>” Umi’s voice sounded through the earpiece for the group.

“Yes, I can hear you perfectly.” Honoka replied with a sigh of relief when she heard her best friend voice.

“<There are no traps laid in the area and I found the perfect place for Kotori, I will also be waiting for you at the eastern part of the enemy’s base.>”

“I see, we will reach you in five minutes.” Honoka’s face tensed while saying that line knowing that there would be a dangerous battle that would happen eventually.

“<Roger that, be careful…over.>” Umi ended the communication.

Eli gulped and then turned on her pocket flash light due to her fear of the dark.

“Okay, we are going out!” Honoka started walking while the former third years released the safety of their guns with crisp clicks and followed their leader’s back.

It didn’t take them long to join Umi since they didn’t have to worry for traps and patrolling personnel but they had to walk a little more until they reached the area and when they did, they were looking at the enemy base at a distance of hundred meters away through binoculars.

The base area was wide and had six watchtowers with six guards each that overlook the safety of the place with its big spot lights, K9 dogs that were patrolling the area with its masters, machine guns and heavily armed personnel stationed at all the right areas and armored vehicles parked perfectly to utilize speed in case of emergencies.

“Wow, it’s like an army base was established here~” Nico said that while whistling in amazement.

“Someone really invested a lot of money just for their services…”Eli sighed in defeat for this troublesome mission and just cursed their luck.

“Maybe it’s a rival group or company of our client?” Nozomi’s muffled voice came from the mouth piece of her gas mask that covered her expression. She was definitely making a tired face behind the mask Eli thought.

“The armored vehicles might become troublesome if we are going to get away from here with the Ojou-sama.” Nico looked intently at the vehicles.

The group was regretting not letting Kotori bring her Barrett Sniper which is an Anti-Tank rifle that specializes destroying heavy armored vehicles such as tanks and Humvees.

Honoka just smiled then asked their outstanding sniper her situation.

“Kotori-chan? Did the little bird have its eyes on its prey?” With a tone that carried assurance, Honoka inquired.

“<Yeah, I am locked and loaded. It might be a little difficult but I can handle them.>” Kotori’s steady breathing was heard from the communicator in their ears. Seeing that Kotori herself is pumped, everyone smiled.

“Don’t worry Kotori, I will help in sabotaging the vehicles so that you will have an easy time focusing against the armed personnel inside.” Eli said that while seeing her backpacks that held some C4 inside.

“<Copy that and thanks Eli-chan.>” Kotori sighed in relief.

“I will assist you then.” Taking one of the backpacks that Eli bought, Umi took some C4 to help ease the burden on Kotori and Eli.

“Thanks Umi, let’s do a great job together again.” Eli grinned while after saying her gratitude, Umi just smiled back.  

“Alright everyone! Tsubasa-san’s distraction will happen anytime now so be ready to storm in.” Honoka ordered while fixing her posture properly with the rifle in her hands.

The watch on the wrist of every participant of this mission showed just twenty seconds before becoming 8pm which was the initial time to start the mission.

Then came the sounds of a helicopter propeller and the engines of about 10 Humvees from the northern part of the base, panicked voices from the former Special Forces personnel on the ground and the big alarm signifying enemy intruders resounded on the once quiet base.

The helicopter that approached the base was a Military Helicopter that was used on Asian countries like Japan and is dubbed as the Ninja.

The Humvees was specially playing a rhythmic beat of a song which was quite catchy to the ears with its speakers.

The guards on the watch towers turned their spotlights to the direction where the sounds came from and then started firing on the oncoming intruders while the people on the ground braced for the coming battle with the people on the Humvees.

The time was 8pm.

“Dancing, dancing! Non-stop my dancing Dancing, dancing! Non-stop my dancing Dancing, dancing! Non-stop my dancing Dancing, dancing! Let me do!”

A melodic group of voices from some girls was heard from the Humvees speakers and the helicopter arrived while shooting its missiles to the area around a watchtower making it fall in the process.

Blasting the enemy with its attached Gatling gun, the Ninja continued to pick its victims one by one.

“Wow…. A-RISE never fails at impressing…” Nico said that while holding her breath with admiration.

“I guess that they did not lose their touch yet.” Eli scratched her cheeks wryly with her finger.

“It really is flashy and cool as they had said.” Umi stared at the commencing battle on the main entrance of the base.

Party shocking party, are you ready to get started? (Come here, right over here) Party shocking party, the world is turning (Come here, right over here)

The song that was playing from the speakers on the Humvees was one of the famous songs that A-RISE sang while they were school idols in the “Love Live” competition a few years ago. The name of the song is “Shocking Party” and it was really a shocking party for the people occupying the base indeed.

When the Humvees reached the main entrance, they rammed the gate and the people who were assigned to the Gatling Guns started shooting the people on the ground that came to intercept them.

The mercenary men from A-RISE who were inside the Humvees went outside of the vehicles and hid behind walls of the base while trading bullets with the enemy in turns.

The enemies were no pushovers either; they have also taken down some of the men from the A-RISE team and used some heavy guns against the Humvees and made them explode.

Gunshots and the agonizing screams of pain from men became the melody, smoke and burnt woods with the tint of concrete dust on air became the fragrance, and the irregular high pressured blood being pumped to the heart and heighted senses from the adrenaline rush became the power used on this battlefield.

A modern everyday battle that uses men that holds guns and ballistic weapons and aiming for the death of their fellow men.

“<Honoka-san? Come in Honoka-san?>” Tsubasa’s voice was heard on the earpiece of everyone while seeing that the helicopter continued shooting at the enemy forces on the ground. Tsubasa was probably the one who was piloting the Japanese Ninja Military Helicopter while using its mini-gun and missiles.

“<Did you guys like the distraction we mad- Woah! That was a close one!>” A guy from the opposing side who was on a roof used a RPG and tried to make the bird in the sky fall down. However, the helicopter dodged it in time.

“Tsubasa-san!!”Honoka panicked at what happened a moment ago when she saw that sight, the others where no different.

“<Don’t worry! We are fine! Continue with the mission!>” The helicopter went past them and then turned back to the base to fire its missiles again.

Hearing that their comrades where fine, they sighed with relief.

“Alright, let’s go!”Honoka’s voice had the commanding tone which gave motivation to everyone present around her.

“Yes!” With that answer and determination being felt from it, the group charged in to rescue the VIP.

KOTORI’S P.O.V

Lying in a prone position, I set my right eye on my enemies through the scope of my Remington RSASS.

I guess that the talk I had with Umi-chan before arriving her had calmed me down significantly.

I am about 1000 meters away from the base, hiding between the tall trees just in case if my position were to be compromised.  

“<Kotori-chan… Take out the people in the watch tower in front us…>” I heard Nozomi-chan’s muffled voice through my right ear; she was probably wearing her trademark mask right now.

“Wait for a moment.” I replied while adjusting the sniper sight to have better accuracy.

I saw Honaka-chan with Nozomi-chan through the scope as they were taking cover near the fences while hiding from the sight of the enemies; I hope that the enemies won’t notice them.

While Umi-chan and Eli-chan were going stealthily to the area where the armored vehicles were parked, they were going to plant bombs on the armored cars since it might become a bit of a problematic matter if it were to be used by the bad guys and follow them using it so I need to thank them later since it will keep me from focusing on the drivers later.

If they successfully planted the C4 on the cars then they would have to rendezvous with Honoka-chan and Nozomi-chan and then provide cover when Nico-chan comes out with the VIP.

Nico-chan chooses to go solo and is trying to reach the supposed location where the VIP is being held while maneuvering between the intervals where the spotlight did not went through. She is fast at her work like always be it killing bad guys or making our clothes when we were school Idols.

I just hope that she doesn’t push herself too much.

I breathed in air to slow and relax my mind before setting my aim on the head of the person who was using the spot light to follow the A-RISE helicopter.

“Just like what Nico-chan taught me, a steady aim will lead to a steady kill…” I voiced my thoughts out to no one particular.

I rested my index finger on the trigger of the rifle, holding my breath and…. then pulled it.

“Bang…”

*BANG*

A loud gunshot resounded through the night’s air that came from the sniper rifle.

The bullet that was shot pierced the head of a guard and the body fell from the watch tower, noticing that one of their buddies was shot and killed in front of them; the other five looked at each other, confused on the situation only to realize what was happening a second later but it was late for them.

Seeing the first person that I shot was hit, I moved the sniper rifle on to my next prey like a steady machine and locked my sight on him.

“Next one…” I pulled the trigger of my trusted sniper rifle with no hesitation at all.

*BANG*

Another shot was heard and another man fell down from the tower.

That’s how I kill to protect what’s precious to me and will not let that accident happen once again.

“Shit! There are enemies here!” The man spoke in English while trying to warn his comrades only to get shot in the upper area of his head. A shot was then aimed to the spotlight to give more leeway for Nico since it will disrupt the way the enemies will try to find the other intruders.

“Nice Job Kotori-chan…”Nozomi praised her junior through the communicator and looked to her left to see Honoka chewing a piece of bread while eyeing for an opportunity to distract the other enemies.

Yes, it was a plan where they will stretch the opposing forces area of operations thin then rescue the hostage while the base is in a chaotic state.

First, A-RISE will be the main distraction and will keep most of the enemy’s attention on them.

Second, Kotori will lay covering fire and will shot to keep them distracted since they will be wary of another force that is attacking them from the side.

Third, Umi and Eli will plant bombs to distract and cripple the opposing force from following their escape path.  

And lastly, bag their “Ojou-sama” as Nico liked to call her and get the fuck out before anything bad happens to them.

“Hmm… I wonder if Umi-chan and Eli-chan finished their task…” Honoka hugged her rifle after pocketing the wrapper and placed a finger on her lips to tap on it.

“Honoka-chan~ I know that you are fired up tonight since it will make Yazawa-sama happy but we shouldn’t do anything rash, okay?” Seeing her leader like that, Nozomi warned her not to do anything that will compromise the mission.

“Geez... I know that…” Honoka grumbled while pouting and repositioned her rifle to its original position on her hands.

A gust of wind came from above when the Ninja that Tsubasa was on, passed above them.

“Its fine then~” Staring at her submachine gun and chuckling, Nozomi adjusted her grip on the P90 and waited for the go signal of her twin-tailed short best friend.

“<Honoka-san? Come in, Honoka-san?>” Tsubasa’s voice was heard from the earpiece.

“Yes, what is it Tsubasa-san?”

“<I think that my helicopter can’t handle the heat anymore and I used most of my arsenal already…>” Tsubasa’s voice had a sorry tone.

Honoka then stared at the flying helicopter and found out that it didn’t have any missiles left while the ammo on its Gatling gun is low.

“I understand, you can leave the rest of the work to us!” Honoka had an assuring tone when she replied to the other group’s leader.

“<Thank you, I am leaving Erena in charge of the remaining men on the front gate; call her if you need some manpower on your area.>” Tsubasa seemed like she didn’t want to leave the place with the tone of her voice.

“Hehe! Don’t worry about us and yeah, we will contact Erena-san if the situation calls for it.” Laughing, Honoka replied with energy to show that they will be fine and the leader of A-RISE doesn’t have anything to worry about.

Cutting off the radio connection between the two leaders, the energetic leader looked at Nozomi and grinned. Seeing that bright smile, Nozomi removed her face mask and faced the orange haired girl.

“Oh my, you are really excited and it is contagious Honoka-chan~” The purple haired girl smiled back.

“I won’t be called ‘Sweet Magnum’ if I weren’t eccentric and happy, right?”

“Yeah, you are right. You really did earn that title fairly, remember the day when Ryouma-sama found out about your popularity and he was surprised.” Nozomi smiled at the memory.

“Father got worried too much to the point that he would force me to bring my family’s best men as escorts for our missions, it was so much trouble telling him not to worry.” While Honoka grimaced remembering the scene.

“It was something really.”

“Yeah and we have Nico-chan to thank for it.”

Amused by the memory that they suddenly remembered, they both smiled in appreciation while awaiting the ‘GO’ signal of the person who showed them this world.

ELI’s P.O.V

Thank God that there is a source of light at this base… Not being able to see in the dark is scary…

I thought that while sprinting to the next wall that Umi was on when I saw a group of armed men pass by us, seemingly going to the area where the fight between their comrades and the men from A-RISE is currently being held.

“Kotori? Where should we go? Go Left or go Right?” When I arrive near Umi, I heard her communicating with our trusted over-watch while she was laying low.

“<Turn left but be careful since there are some bad guys on that side that you will meet in a few seconds.>” The little bird replied with the sound of her sniper rifle being heard as she continued her job as our eyes and support, we began on sprinting.

“Roger that.” I replied then pulled my combat specific knife from its holster on my lower back while running.

Following Kotori’s directions, Umi sprinted forward past me and then kneeled on her right knee near a wall, pulled her daggers from their holders, two at each of her hands then turned around the corner and threw it.

As I was nearing her, I heard some muffled groans. It seems that she threw the sharp objects at their throats, killing with high accuracy that leaves no noise, as expected of the girl who is titled as ‘Ghost’.

I couldn’t even help her, taking all the work upon her, it’s so like her.  

As I was re-sheathing the blade back to its holster while thinking deeply, I heard a voice breaking my train of thoughts.

“Let’s go.” The navy haired girl got up from her kneeling position began sprinting again.

I ran behind her since I was carrying a heavy gun with me and half a bag of explosives, not even five seconds has passed and I saw four bodies lying on the floor impaled with Umi’s daggers in their throats.

“No time to spare for doing a maid job.” I spoke while passing the corpses. The ‘maid job’ here is meant to hide the bodies, a little customized army style language that we girls made and use now due to the influence from playing First Person shooting games that Nico forced us to play when we were training.

“But once they find those bodies, things will get hectic.” The knife specialist sighed as she continued to look forward in case that there were enemies ahead.

As we were running, our sniper’s voice resounded through our right ear.

“<It seems that the area is clear in front of you but be careful, I need to keep Nico-chan in my sights so I won’t be able to watch over you guys.>” Kotori’s gunshots is still resonating as we were running.

“You have done enough, let us do the rest.” I spoke as we rounded another corner.

“Thank you Kotori and don’t push yourself too much.” Umi replied as she was placing her right eye on her holographic sight of her rifle for a steady aim in case we see enemies in front of us.

“<Little Bird, out.> Chucking, Kotori cut off her communication and focused her main job as being Nico’s over-watch.

Umi smiled faintly as we were running straight ahead in a hallway that appeared to lead us to where the means of transportation of the opponents were placed.

“Let’s tell Ho-“

*BARK*                

Something had jumped to Umi’s right flank from a corner but she was quick to react and stabbed it with her right back thigh’s knife, her main knife.

The creature had fallen down to the ground and was whimpering, it turned out to be a K9 that had apparently lost its owner or was set loose so it could find sneaky personnel.

“Sorry…” Umi knelt down and pulled her knife out of the poor mutt’s side and swiftly stabbed the heart so the dog can be let off its misery.

“Are you okay?” I called out to her as she stood up; she smiled wryly at my concern while putting the bloodied knife back at its holster and spoke.

“Yeah, let’s just get this done…” We began sprinting again and Umi contacted our leader.

“Honoka, we are nearing the targets. How is the situation on your side?”

“<Umi-chan!>” Our leader’s loud voice echoed through the earpieces making a ringing noise that made me and Umi cringe at the sound.

“<Shh… Don’t be loud, Honoka-chan.>” I heard Nozomi’s clear voice and it seems that she is not wearing her mask. I don’t know how she does it but her voice had always calmed me in mysterious ways.

“<How are you holding up, Elicchi?>” She spoke again asking me how I am feeling, I bet that she is concerned of my problem dealing with darkness.

“I am fine and with Umi too. There is nothing to worry about it if we are working together, right?” I replied to the communicator while looking at the blue haired knife expert.

“Yeah.” Came her modest reply.

“ <What’s this? What’s this? I think that I am hearing the chorus of “Storm in Lover”!>” Our leader voice resounded reminding me that she is too loud for their safety.

“Honoka, not now and please lower your voice for your own good…” I reminded her while whispering in an attempt to divert the topic so that Nozomi would just let our junior slip of a tongue to not bother her and since we have had arrived at the area.    

“<Sorry… Sorry…>” She apologized but I heard a muffled shout of a man in the background.

“Did you just get found out and did Nozomi just take care of him, right?” I sighed when I imagined what had happened at my comrade’s side as I was scanning the area of people, Umi on high alert.

“<Ugh… How did you find out?>” Came her reply with a tint of apology for messing up and not being careful.

This leader of mine, she has no sense of responsibility and I see Umi sighing, I tap her shoulder with my left hand before she could begin her sermon.

“Let her be, Nozomi is with her so it’s going to be fine.”

“You are right, I forgot that most of the time we get in trouble, it’s either you Nico and Honoka are the people who came up with crazy ideas to bail us out.” The knife expert relaxed after saying that.

“Is that supposed to be a complement?” We giggle at my reply.

“<Are you guys done by the way?>” The cheerful voice of Honoka resounded again.

“We didn’t even start.” I replied while peeking through a gap in the wall. Seeing that there are about fifteen armed men watching the surrounding parameter and oh my… A tank…

“How in the world did a tank end up in the Amazons?” Umi spoke what was in my mind.

There were another five armed men who arrived and spoke to the leader who were looking after their vehicles and then they got on one Humvee, it seem that they are going to assist the battle on the main gate.

“<A tank…>” The normally cheerful tone of voice became serious making me a bit uncomfortable, it seems that Umi too have heard it from Honoka.

“H-Honoka! Don’t worry about us and stick to the plan!” I hurriedly placated our leader to avoid complications and to lower the chances of something going wrong.

“<Umm… If you say so Eli-chan…>” My leader’s voice seemed to relent and it was a good thing.

“We will begin our task in thirty seconds, there are fifteen lookers and we need to clean them up.” I brought back the main topic that went down the pits, signaling Umi to shoot them in my mark with my left hands.

“<Okay… Good Luck.>” She replied with a monotonous tone that was so unlike her and Umi had to stifle her laugh, it’s her first time today since our flight few hours ago.

I gripped the fore grip of the Light Machine Gun and placed my finger on the trigger already done choosing my targets, Umi done with hers too.

“Let them fall.” These words left my mouth in Russian.

A barrage of shots resounded from the guns and at a matter of seconds the men fell down one by one with death cries.

“The parameter is clear but the shots should have alerted other patrols of what happened here.” Umi jumped from the cover while opening her pack and went to the direction of the tank; I also did the same but went to a Humvee instead thanking God that they didn’t use the tank against our A-RISE comrades at the main gate.

“Let’s get out of here in two minutes.” I stuck the C4 under the backside of the tires, hoping that the number of bombs we bought will be enough for the disabling the force that will try to bite us at the back.

“Okay.” Sticking C4 on the railings of the tank, Umi replied back.

We did our part here and now the waiting time of our center to shine brightly tonight.

“It’s now up to you, Nico.”

NICO’s P.O.V

I jumped forward while stabbing a man at the back directly to his heart making him shout in agony before dying, that death cry didn’t last long when I twisted the handle of the knife and made the sharp object lodged in his heart turn – effectively killing the tall man in front me. Hearing the steady rhythm of the little bird’s Semi Automatic Sniper Rifle firing in intervals, I pulled my combat knife out from the dead corpse and watched it fell to the ground.

“Kotori?” I tapped my ear piece while putting the bloodied knife on my left thigh then began sprinting while speaking with our over-watch.

“<Yes, Nico-chan?>” My perfect sniper that I, Yazawa Nico have personally taught replied instantly.

I hate to admit it but she is getting better and better with her sniping skills and accuracy. I taught her real good.

“Am I nearing the supposed location or not?” I spoke while avoiding a patrol of five men armed with submachine guns that had found one of the few bodies of their comrades that I killed earlier.

“<You are doing just fine, look at all the fans that are searching for you.>” Kotori chuckled seemingly amused at the panicking men that is going to and fro in search of the intruder which is me.

“It’s not funny Kotori…” I grumbled as I pulled a flash bang that can blind people for a short duration from a holster attached to my back, I plan to throw it to the earlier patrolling guys that I avoided.

“<Slipping up is so ‘Ultra Rare’ to happen for you Nico-chan, what happened to you to the point of forgetting to do the maid job? Is something wrong? Are you hurt?>” Her normally cheery voice now had concern laced with it making me feel guilty but I can’t just say that I was feeling lethargic to even bother hiding the body of the first one that I killed tonight.

It’s because of the fight that I had with Maki-chan… Why can’t she just accept that she is in the wrong…?

I pulled the pin.

“I was distracted, okay…” I replied causally while throwing the cylindrical object from my hand at the patrolling group that had their formation broken when they found the body that I left behind minutes ago; I then pulled my dual medium length Katanas from their scabbards that was being held at my back with a crisp ringing that I always liked to hear as a child. It always reminded me of those days when Papa was alive and showed me his smile.

“Time to show your talons, Yazawa Nico.”

The flash bang exploded right in the middle causing the armed men to shout in pain in unison, taking that as my sign I dashed from the wall that I was hiding at and hacked the nearest one in front of me in a diagonal upward right slash causing his body to spray blood from the cut that he received.  

Before the body could fall to the ground, I already had stabbed another man through his head and then dashed to the next one to his left. When the two corpses touched the ground, I had already slashed the abdomen of a man who was still gripping his eyes with his hands due to the pain of the flash – making him vomit blood from his mouth and his body slouched forward when my blade had passed through him.

I still have three seconds remaining from the flash bang effect, I calculated from seeing the other two guys who were slowly gaining balance and awareness.

Heh, they will really get freaked out when they see what happened to their comrades but nah, sorry pals. I will put you out of your miseries now.

I rotated both my Katanas at my hands and then threw it to their direction at the same time.

When they had opened their eyes, they saw my swords coming at them but they couldn’t react in time and got pierced directly between the eyes causing them to die instantly. The force of my throws had thrown their bodies away to a little distance; seeing that the five people around me had fallen to the ground, I then moved to grab the things that I had thrown with a sigh.

“<Wow… You call that distracted but it was so amazing Nico-chan… I couldn’t follow your movements at all moments ago.>” The little bird’s high pitched voice carried amazement in it making me smile wryly.

“It’s already a given since it’s me and you have seen much more impossible feats done already so why are you acting surprised when I do this much?” I honestly don’t think that I did anything out of the ordinary with the things that I do when we have operations but they always shower me with praises and I don’t like it at all.

Yeah, I like it when they praise my cuteness and doing things concerning Idol Stuff but praising me of doing dirty work is different and I really don’t like it. Not that I will tell them about it though.

“<If you say so… But you really did great Nico-chan!>” Kotori giggled at my reply.  

This little stun had wasted me 10 seconds… I really am distracted... Maybe I should apologize to her when we get done here… But that will make me look weak and needy… This stupid pride of mine…

I thought idly on why I was doing badly tonight while walking to retrieve the dual swords though being careful not to make a noise in case there are other group of people lurking in the area.

“M-M-Monster…” An agonizing voice caught my attention when I pulled my twin Katanas from the heads of the fallen men. Turning around to look at where the sound came from, I saw the man who I slashed at his abdomen on the ground looking up at me sweating badly while clutching his stomach and body twitching. On the ground, his UMP45 had apparently blocked some part of my cut and saving his life from my blow seconds before. I slashed my twin blades to the ground to get the blood out of its blades then re-sheathing it back to its scabbards. I knelt down picking a pistol from one of the holsters of his fallen comrades; conveniently it had a suppressor on it to lessen the sound of the shot and proceeded to walk to him.

“Sorry for not killing you in one blow, it made you experience pain similar to the Japanese Seppuku.” I lined the pistol to his forehead.  

“A-a L-little g-girl…?” The man spoke breathlessly when he saw my figure completely, shocked beyond relief. Normally, this sentence would have insulted me but I am working now so I should stick to being a professional, keeping a stoic face to hide the agonizing thing that I would do in the few next seconds to the man laying in front of me.

“Yeah, I am just a little girl so please let go off your worldly desires and go to the afterlife in peace.” I replied in a perfect American accent English while flashing a smile full of melancholy at him.

“N-never knew that I w-will meet my end at the h-hands of a little girl but I am glad…” The man coughed blood as he spoke and then showed a dry smile with his twitching blood covered mouth.

He is glad…? I have met different kinds of people and some of them had said something similar like his words… When I was a child… My Papa had explained the true history of my family, clan and nature to me… Knowing that I will step into a dark hell hole, I prepared myself as a child and here I am now…

Taking the life of a person to just save another.

“You are showing a pained expression… Little girl… Don’t be…” It seems that I am really am distracted, showing a weak expression when I should have already gotten used to this.

The man took deep breaths and showed determination in his dying eyes while taking off his communicator; it seems that he wants to do something.

“This sinful profession can take your life in a second if you lose your focus and showed mercy on your enemies …” Surprisingly he didn’t cough blood as he spoke; I hummed to show that I was listening. “But hey… do me a favor and do what you have said and send me to the afterlife.”

His death wish resounded in my head, it sounded hopeful and pleading too. It seems that he have suffered in life.

“Sure.” I lined the barrel of the pistol to his head once again.

“One last thing… Can I know your name and what are you called…?” This guy is sure is talkative for a dying man but I will humor him since I made him suffer too much.

“Yazawa Nico. ‘Raven of the End’.”

“I see… Even a Monster of the Eastern Parts has emotions too…” He chuckled and then looked at the sky. I smiled sadly at the word ‘emotions’ since I know that this line of work should not have it.

“Well then, Miss Yazawa… Do the honors…”  The man closed his eyes as he smiled one last time, “Honey. I am coming for you.”

“Rest in Peace.” I pulled the trigger, “This job is so much worse than my side one.” Letting the handgun fall to the ground, I walked away from the body and then began running to my target.

“<Nico-chan…>”

“Yeah.”

“<Let me bake you some cheesecake when we get back?>”

“Yeah.” I replied once again dully. This is getting tiring but I need to keep my act together. Not for me but for them and for her too.

Running for three minutes around the directions Kotori have given to me, I stopped and instantly took cover to hide and saw the warehouse and the sharpened looks of the patrolling men who were hiding in behind walls and barricades. It seems that stealth won’t be an option, guess that I have to use my Uzis for this one.

“Kotori,” Her name left my mouth with a sigh and I grabbed one smoke bomb from a holster at the back, “keep me backed up.” throwing the sphere object that was in my hands into an arc to their position repeating what I did minutes ago.

“<Okay Nico-chan.>” Her firm voice resounded as smoke started to rise from the ball and I dashed out from my cover to kill other people once again.

A disgusting cycle that I so hated would once again happen against my will and it seems that it won’t be changing anytime soon.

I hate myself for dragging those Angelic Girls to this hell…

*BANG*

Bullets left my guns and shouts reverberated as a result of my practiced actions.

MAKI’s P.O.V

The stars on this side of the planet shine brightly than the ones back at Japan… Maybe it’s due to not having so many city lights that overshadows the ones on the sky… I wonder if Nico-chan stopped to look at the sky… No I don’t think she would do that… But then again, this senior of mine had surprised me so many times that I lost count… She is the brightness star that I laid my eyes on actually…  

Staring at the dark sky that had glittering white sand which was stars while sitting on the get-away Humvee’s hood, I immersed myself with idle thoughts while twirling a strand of my hair, an old habit of mine that I can’t get rid off since I started middle-school when I thought of something too deeply or when I feel that I am in an uncomfortable situation.

A sudden breeze of the wind found my uncovered arms, the creatures of the jungle going wild as the noises from the battle were so new to them and were not accustomed to it but I kept on ignoring my surroundings and just sat there.

“Hmm, It looks like the A-RISE boys are letting loose out there~” A cheery voice came from a few feet to my right. Turning my head to the source, I saw my two friends sitting on a vehicle that was beside mine, a customized Humvee that will provide cover for the one that I sat on.

“Fans sure would do anything for their idols.” Rin spoke again while eyeing the situation through binoculars that she held.

“Don’t underestimate what they can do if they were going to get handshakes and smiles as a reward Rin-chan.” Hanayo’s voice as she was busy reloading the cartridges of the mini-gun on top of the Humvee was firm but held a sense of warmth. I guess that being a co-fan like the men who were fighting at the base gave her a sense of camaraderie with them.

Well, they do deserve some credit since they are men that were trained by the JSDF.

I lay down on the hood as I thought on how our life had turned out like this, reminiscing on the day that changed it.

“Hey Rin and Hanayo, you girls have no regrets entering this kind of life, right?” I know I had asked this question many times before but I need to hear their answers verbally like always, I am a spoiled girl after all and I have insecurities too.

“I believe that we all agreed to do this together Maki-chan and all for Nico-chan’s sake too, right?” Hanayo soft voice had determination laced on it and it made me smile, she really had changed during the course of this year.

“μ's would be always the nine of us, no more and no less. Nico-chan is a part of μ's and it’s normal to help her, nya!” Rin’s answer made me giggle a little, yeah, we are μ's or more like De μ's now.

“Thanks for always answering this repetitive question of mine, I really appreciate it.” I word out my gratitude towards their friendship and not abandoning Nico-chan where she really needed it.

But hmph! Nico-chan should be more like these two and not be a jerk like always! How come she denies me the desire of her meeting my Papa for the second time! I know that ‘first impression lasts’ but what she did saved my soul but! Stupid! Stupid Nico-chan! So stubborn and a coward! It’s not like this would be ‘A dinner with your girlfriend’s parents’ like she thought would be! Maybe… Papa wouldn’t interrogate the future Boss of the all powerful Yakuza of Japan right?

I mean, I knew from Mother (Nico’s Mother) that Nico-chan’s Father used to be friends with Papa but that doesn’t mean that he would go easy on her. If I thought about it like that, Nico-chan might be right this time… But how could she have her way when I had to suffer under Mother’s interrogative gaze during our stay at the Yazawa Estate for a whole year! She needs to suffer her portion too! Idiot Nico-chan!!!!

“-chan!!! Maki-chan!!! Are you listening to us!? Nya!?” Rin’s shout resounded to my eardrums making it ring.

“Ow, sorry… I was just thinking about something…” I replied and realized that heat was creeping onto my face due to my embarrassment of not listening to what they were saying.

“I thought that you went to sleep, you were tossing around a lot and it felt that you were having a difficulty relaxing on the car’s hood.” The orange haired spoke once again while eyeing me with suspicion.

“I-It’s nothing…” I got up from my lying position and replied instinctively, regretting the sputtering of my voice that came out of my mouth, I hoped that they wouldn’t know what I was thinking before.

“Is it about Nico-chan?” The olive-haired girl’s soft voice tore through the winds and reached my ears.

Hanayo! I trusted you! What the heck!?

“N-No! It’s not!” Damn. Really, my throat? Are you betraying me, why did you make me croak that sentence weirdly!

“Aha! You should be honest with us Maki-chan~” Rin is ecstatic like she got a new flavor of ramen handed to her. Nope, not going to bite that bait Rin, I learned from my past mistakes.

“You should just make up with her,” I shifted my burning face to Hanayo in attempt to ignore Rin’s remark, “and not force her to do what she doesn’t like to do. It would hurt both of you.” Hmm… Hanayo’s words do have a point.

“Okay… I would do that…” I pout at them and got off the Humvee’s hood and picked the AK-12 rifle that lay on the bumper while wearing a beret on my head.

“Maki-chan sure has changed.” I heard Rin’s voice and I flashed a smile at her direction.

“Must be the affect of being the Number One Idol in the Universe’s lover I guess.” I replied coolly while going to their direction earning soft giggles from the duo.

I believe that we all have changed one way or another and I don’t know if it was the best or for the worst but one thing is for sure, I don’t regret entering this life to help the person that I have fallen in love for.

“Hey Hanayo, let me be the one who would use Puncher-chan today, can I?” I suddenly had the mood to be daring tonight and I bet that I would look gorgeous when I fire those rounds. I would love to make Nico-chan’s jaw drop like I have always done, thinking of her bewildered face excites me.

“Sure Maki-chan! Then I guess that I would have to drive the bailout vehicle, hope that I can do it properly…” Good, Hanayo have agreed to swap roles for this operation but she doubted herself if she could pull it or not.

I looked away from her lilac eyes and faced Rin who was at the driver’s seat, asking for her support to cheer Hanayo up from her usual ‘self beating’.

“You are too modest Hanayo,” I began as I opened the second door to the armored car, “Maki-chan is right Kayo-chin, your hacking skills helped us at numerous occasions!” Rin continued after me as she got out of the car from the main door, “B-But hacking is different from bailing out!” Hanayo cried out as she slipped to the other seat at the second row of the vehicle, I lay my rifle on the second seat that is beside the driver one and sat beside Hanayo while Rin entered through door I opened and sat on my left side.

“Hmph, excuses.” I snorted and lay my head on her shoulder, “If you deny your hacking skills then I would have to add your unique feats I guess.” Rin hugged my side and smiled smugly at Hanayo’s direction, “And we know how you hate it when we praise you that way, nya~” and spoke.

“Nooo~!!! Don’t make me remember the crazy stuff I did!!! Please!!!” Heh, she screamed and flailed around, it means that we got her.

“Then don’t belittle yourself, Hanayo.” I grabbed her left hand and locked my eyes on her. “You are a strong girl and the rest of the members all know it.” I felt Rin’s hand atop mine, “Kayo-chin is the strongest among all of us!” and squeezed our hands.

“G-Geez… Did you girls really have to hit me below the belt like that…? When I clearly said that I don’t want to remember it…” Oh, she is pouting! Looks like we managed to calm her, I grinned at Rin and giggled.

“Yeah, it’s your punishment, nya!” Rin giggled too then separated from the group hug that she had made a minute ago, leaving the car and started stretching outside.

“You would do fine.” I left Hanayo’s side as she hummed in response and went through a hole in the vehicle’s roof where the mini-gun was located.

Checking the condition of Puncher-chan once again if she would get a malfunction or not I spoke to Rin to give the binoculars that she was using minutes ago to me. Rin obliged and threw her binoculars to my direction and I caught it.

I peered through the binoculars and started to look all over the place for Nico-chan.

“Ah, there she is.” I voiced my thoughts as my eyes landed on a figure that dashed into a smoke covered area while shooting, she hit several men through the fog and some bodies fell without her looking at them, it seems Kotori is backing her up… They really do make a great team and it makes me a bit jealous of their chemistry although I won’t tell that to anyone.

“Rin, Hanayo. Nico-chan is going to enter the hot zone in a few seconds, get ready.” I threw the zooming device back to Rin and mentally prepared myself to shoot.

Hanayo got out of Rin’s car, bringing her Striker along with her and jogged to the other car while Rin went to the driver’s seat and started the engine.

“Let’s make this perfect.” I spoke coolly and heard the two girls cheer at my words making me smile.

Nico-chan, prepare yourself for an awesome entrance.

I grabbed with my two hands the triggers of Puncher-chan and waited for the flare that would sign our entrance to the battlefield.

“Intruders!” A shout filled with alarm along with gunshots resounded outside the warehouse.

“So this area is their real target after all. Get ready for a shot out you fags!” A man with a beard who seems to be the leader of this base ordered the ten men who were tasked to look over the hostage.

The hostage sat on a metal a chair with ropes tying the limbs and a bloodied white sack on the head to cover the face.

“We can’t see anything through this smoke!!”

“What the hell!? We can’t they be kille-Gah!!!” A scream was heard outside followed by complete silence later making the men nervous.

“The hell was that!” A person who hid behind a crate shouted in fear while nervously gripping his assault rifle.

“Suck it up fucker!” The leader stood behind the hostage and lit a cigarette that was on his mouth then proceeded to position a pistol near the hostage’s head.

“If bullets can hurt them then it can kill them!” The bearded man roared to boost the morale of his men. “Aren’t you men that came from the best of the best of your dammed countries army!? If so, then there is noth-“

*BLAST*

A blast of pure white illuminated the slightly dark interior of the warehouse and the men who didn’t hide behind obstacles as covers got blinded making them shout in pain, several small red flares were then thrown inside and lit the big room with its red color.

Taking the chance, Kotori began picking off the people inside. Bullets began breaking the glass on the second floor as it hit the head of the person who hid behind the crate.

“They even got a sniper!?” The leader was now panicking when he saw that his men fell around him one by one until he was the only person left from his group.

Nico walked through the main door with steady steps towards the only two living occupants in the warehouse.

“S-Stop right there if you don’t want a hole in his head!!!” The cigarette fell from his mouth as he threatened to kill the hostage.

“His head?” Nico tilted her head at the words uttered by the hysterical man. She tapped into her earpiece to speak with Kotori while raising her right hand that held the submachine gun and faced it into the direction of the leader.

“It seems that the Intel is off.” Nico suppressed a scoff as she spoke with Kotori, the situation was getting troublesome for her.

“A little Asian girl!?” When the leader saw the illuminated figure properly, he screamed in shock. “Wait!? Jesus Christ! You’re Mist!?” That title made Nico frown, it is one of the many titles she got was referred to in the underground society. It seems that the bearded man now knew who attacked the base as he was twitching in fear.

“Not these again, take out his leg and I will take his hand.” She lowered her Uzi and pulled out her combat knife, Nico whispered her orders to their over-watch.

“<Sure!>” As soon as Nico heard the reply, she threw the knife instantly to the direction of the hand that held the pistol.

The leader kneeled when he felt a hot object piercing his thigh then in the second that followed by, a painful sharp thing at the back of his hand.

“Aaaahhh!!!” He screamed when his nerves processed what happened to his body, lying on the ground while holding his thigh.

Nico resumed her stride to the person who sat on the chair while pulling out her katana to cut off the ropes that binds him.

“Hmm… The man is the British Air Force uniform. I think that we should bring him with us Kotori.”  The sniper hummed in response as Nico cut off the ropes and took off the sack to reveal a European man who had his face covered with bruises and blonde hair disheveled, completely knocked out.

“<Nico-chan, I need to leave your side for awhile… It seems that they sent a squad to look for me...>” Kotori’s whispering voice broke Nico’s train of thoughts on how to deal with this problem they encountered. It seems that the constant flashing of her rifle gave out her position and the enemies wanted some revenge against the person who took so many of their comrades down.

“I see... Be careful and don’t do anything rash, okay? Try contacting someone for extraction.” Nico trusted Kotori enough to say this and cut off her communication. It would be a lie if she told that she didn’t worry for the ashen-haired girl but she, herself had taught Kotori on how to get away from predicaments and even saw the Sniper’s feats.

“Everything would be okay, the last incident wouldn’t happen again…” She spoke her thoughts out aloud to reassure herself, the small red flares brightness had died and the room became dark.

“Mister? Hey! Wake up! We need to get out of here as soon as possible!” Putting her katana back to its place on her back, Nico began on shaking the sleeping European with little force. The man eventually started stirring on the chair and soon opened his eyes.

When he became aware of his environment, he instantly clenched his hands and went for a right hook to the raven-haired’s face only to be dodged even before it was released.

“Who the bloody hell are you!?”  As the fist tore through air, the man roared as he eyed Nico’s figure, it seems that his eyes has yet to adjust to the darkness of the big room which made him wary of the people in it.

“Dude ! Chill out! I was hired to save your ass. Be thankful that I accepted the job! I can’t believe that British men are brutes who would dare to punch a lady!” Nico started complaining in light manner as she approached him once again, she didn’t really have any problems but she needed to make the tall man calm down before getting out of this place and so she joked to lower his defenses.

“Huh, an American woma- wait!? You’re an Asian!?” The soldier let out a shocked gasp as the moonlight from the broken windows shone on Nico. Well, who can blame him since the accent he heard from the small framed girl was so heavily in an American one.

“I would love to chat with you but we are running out of time, pick up a weapon from the ground and let’s get the hell out of here! “ Nico ordered as she went to the neglected leader who kept on swearing at her, she kneeled beside him and spoke.

“Grit your teeth.” She pulled out her knife nonchalantly from his bloodied hand making him scream in pain during the process.

“M-Monster!” He glared at her with fear evident in his eyes as he now knew who they had fought against. This act alone showed him how true the rumors are about a group of young girls who are so skilled in this godforsaken profession.

“If I were you, I would have taken out the knife from my hand throw it back to the person who threw it, killing them in the process but even you couldn’t do that. Heh, former Special Forces… I bet that you guys were the lowest of the low from your batches and got dropped out of the army.” Nico dully spoke as she stood up and faced the British man while putting her knife back.

His hands now held a submachine gun with four magazines attached to his waist.

“Got everything you need, then let’s go.”As she began on walking to the exit, the man spoke.

“What about that guy?” He gestured to the leader who was now gasping for more air and skin paled from the lack of blood.

“Not gonna do anything to him, he will die from blood loss or you can end his misery by killing him off.” Nico’s answer was simple, although she did kill the person from before to get him out of his misery, this was a different case and she didn’t want to do anymore than she did tonight.

The blonde man thought for some seconds before lining his gun to the bearded man’s direction and pulling the trigger. “Fair enough, thanks for the hospitality mate.”

Nico shrugged and started walking away until the soldier spoke again, halting her once again.

“What is it now?” She huffed in reply and began on checking her remaining ammunitions.

“I want to ask you one thing before trusting you completely.”

“Sure, what do want to know?” Nico was honestly getting irritated with the soldier since he kept on delaying the operation time-line and it might get disrupted if the enemies found out and got them pinned down in the warehouse but she couldn’t show it in her face.  

“Who sent you?” It was a basic question and Nico had to admit that she forgot to reveal her client to the young man but then again this profession has a tendency to make people doubt each other. There was always the chance that the blonde man might be a mercenary in disguise too.

Nico contemplated on exposing the individual who hired them while staring at the eyes of the man for a few seconds. She took her chances, if he was an enemy in disguise, the raven-haired can kill him off instantly, if not then it’s all the better for her situation.

“The one who sent us is Commander Wallcroft of the British Special Air Service.” She exhaled out her reply.

“Ah, the commander himself, he sure has a soft spot for his only daughter.” The young man cackled and began on jogging to her direction, “But why Mercenaries and not the SAS?” and asked other inquiry after he reached her.

She became relived to know that she didn’t have to kill him and turned around to face the exit.

“I have answered one question of yours already, ask your higher ups once you get back instead.” Nico began on jogging herself while readying the flare to signal that she had done her part.

“Fair enough.” The man replied as they went past the big door.

“Good.” Nico squeezed the trigger and a bright pink light flew into the dark sky from the flare gun.

“That would draw a lot of attention here.” The man eyed the bright pink star in the sky.

“I know and because of that, we need to regroup with my team so follow me.” She holstered the flare gun into a small pack behind her and began sprinting to the area where Honoka stayed at, directions already memorized when Kotori had told her a few minutes ago before entering.

The orange-haired girl started on firing as soon as she saw the go signal of Nico against a group of unfortunate personnel who came in to her line of sight when they went into the warehouse direction, surprising the group and killing some of them but had to hide behind cover when a barrage of retaliating fire came her way.

Honoka had kept her calm even when sounds of some bullets hit the concrete behind her and the rest flew above her head, rummaging for a Frag grenade in her packs.

“Oh, I got extra bread here. Lucky!” Seeing her favorite bread at first before finding the spherical object next in her pack, she hid the bread at another pack while picking it.

“Nozomi-chan? Did you come across Nico-chan?” She asked as she pulled the pin out and she threw it into a group of four men who hid behind a rock, there were a horrified shout then an explosive noise reaching her ears a second later.

“<Not yet Honoka-chan, it seems that Nicocchi had encountered a problem along the way.>” Nozomi spoke through the earpiece, a few meters away from the battlefield since she was waiting to rendezvous with the raven-haired girl.

“I see, but you need to hurry since I can’t handle them if more reinforcements came from another part of the base.” Honoka spoke as she took turns on firing against the armed men only for her shots to miss since she had to duck her head under the concrete block when the barrage of bullets got intense, giving her no room to look where her enemies locations was at.

This went on for a minute or two until she saw her two comrades and a man who was supposed to be a girl from her right eye’s peripheral view. Nozomi began laying covering fire from her P90 along the blonde man as Nico sprinted to a metal crate and instantly took cover as soon as bullets had touched the ground that was near her feet.

“Hey Honoka! Are you sure Rin’s ‘Me0lthy Honney’ can ram through this side of the walls!?” The raven-haired shouted through the never ending barrage of shots as she fired with her Uzis behind her cover.

“I am sure Nico-chan! Umi-chan said that this side of the base seems to be the weakest! Rin-chan would also arri-“ Honoka’s voice got drowned out when a sound of a vehicle rammed to a wall behind them followed by sounds of successive rapid firing from a mini-gun they all knew too well.

“What took you so lon-“ The raven-haired outburst died down on her throat when she whipped her head toward the direction of the vehicle. Who can blame her when she saw Maki who kept on pressing the triggers of the mini-gun with a cold expression, hair flowing gently when her body vibrated a little from every movement she made when she pointed the barrel somewhere and completely trying to lessen the enemies in their area, she was stunned for some seconds until she saw a smile in the features of that cold expression.

“Nico-chan!? Hey! Come here!” Rin’s voice had now completely woken up from her daze, urging her to get in the vehicle, facing the place where the VIP hid, she signaled to Nozomi to throw a smoke bomb from her area.

The purple-haired threw the bomb to the middle area of the battlefield as the getaway Humvee driven by Hanayo entered through the hole in the wall.

“We are getting out of here, let’s go!” Honoka ordered and laid covering fire for Nozomi and the man, who began to run towards Hanayo’s vehicle.

“Where are Umi and Eli, weren’t they supposed to rendezvous with us here as we initially planned!?” Nico let out a second smoke bomb to strengthen the smoke surrounding the area.

“They said that they are going to pick up Kotori-chan and then join us after somewhere!” Honoka replied while reloading her rifle’s magazine.

“They better be!” Nico whipped her head to Maki’s direction and smiled at her figure. “Say, Honoka? Shouldn’t we get going too?”

“Wait for a second... There it is!” The girl with azure eyes stared at her watch and exclaimed a moment later, “Let’s go Nico-chan!”

A certain part of the base began on exploding continuously and they dashed after she said that, it seems that she had waited for the bombs Eli and Umi planted to go off.

Honoka entered into Hanayo’s car, Nozomi keeping the door open for her while Nico went for Rin’s car. The bailout car got out through the cracks of the wall first followed by the escort vehicle and both sped out of the base.

After insuring that everything was fine, Nico looked at the redhead.

“Hey, Maki-chan? Why are you the one using Puncher-chan? It’s dangerous, what if you got shot during the entrance?” Nico tried not to sound angry but it failed since there were parts in her sentences that her voice raised in pitch. “What would your father say if he found out that you got hurt?”            

“Nico-chan, you should stop treating me like a kid. I didn’t get hurt so everything is fine, okay?” Maki sighed as she went down to seat beside Nico and stared outside the window while interlacing their hands together. Rin kept her eyes on the vehicle which had the blonde man they had rescued.

“Nothing happened today but you can’t predict what will happen in the future…” Nico replied in a whisper as she squeezed the glove clad slender fingers of their medic, getting a hum in reply from the redhead.

“So Nico-chan? Why isn’t the hostage a girl but a man?” Rin took the silence of those two as her cue to ask a question she had wonder when they rammed through the wall earlier and saw the figure of the soldier.

But before Nico could answer Rin’s question, sounds of bullets hitting the heavy metal plate reverberated in their ears.

“What the hell!?” Rin grunted as she tried to keep the car from veering to another direction, Maki already clutching the mini-gun and Nico contacting Honoka.

“Honoka!? Are you girls fine in there!? Maki-chan! Three cars to our left flank!” Nico saw flashes of heavy machinegun from three cars in their left. Must be a patrol they have missed.

“<Yeah, we are all fine although Hanayo-chan is a little jittery now… Ahaha…>” Nico heard Honoka while she sheepishly laughed and a Hanayo’s scream of ‘somebody help me’ reverberated after that.

An explosion was heard followed by a crashing sound of an object hitting a tree, Nico looked again at the window and saw only one car remaining.

“Nice job Maki-chan!” Nico had to praise her lover although a subconscious part of her was saddened by that fact that she still had soiled the redhead existence with tainted hands, all of her friends now had become accustomed to killing off bad guys, at times not even feeling remorse when things got hectic, a thought that mortified her at times when she was emotionally vulnerable.

“I can’t shake the last car!” Maki yelled as her shots got blocked by the trees that surrounded them.

The chase lasted for a few more seconds until a rocket flew and hit the enemy vehicle that followed them. Smoke arising from the flames as a new vehicle came to their view, Maki already pointing the turret into the direction of the vehicle.

“<Wait, don’t shoot!>” It was Eli’s voice, it seems that they had used a vehicle from the base.

“<Ah Eli-chan!? It’s about time that you girls have arrived!>” Honoka’s voice was heard from the earpiece as Eli’s vehicle neared them.

“<Bailing Kotori took some time.>” They now can see her figure carrying an RPG on her shoulder as she waved at them.

“<We couldn’t ask more from A-RISE since their distraction team was barely standing against our opponents when we went to the area where Kotori hid…>” They heard Umi’s voice along with the humming of Kotori.

“<I see… Let’s go back to the aircraft and regroup with Tsubasa-san. We also need to report this to Nico-chan’s mother.>” The leader ordered and the three vehicles went to the direction of the river.

In one of the many skyscrapers of the capital city of Japan, a figure clad in black suit sat at a grand office in the tallest floor of the said structure, the giant room was darkened by the shutters and only having the light from the desktop illuminating the figure.

A knock resounded on the big wooden doors covered with drawings of black ravens flying to attack a dragon.

“Yes, come in.” The figure leaned at her chair and stretched her arms before settling comfortably at her comfy chair before wearing a neutral expression on her well curved face.

“Madam, you have a call from one of our business partners and it’s very important.”  A woman with short purple hair with a busty figure also clad in a slightly purple suit entered the room.

“I see, connect it to the TV screen and can you brew me some tea drink too?” The figure stood up and walked to sit on the sofa located at the right side of the room while looking through some files at her hand.

“Understood, do you need something else?” The secretary asked as she began on leaving the room.

“I need someone to be taken care off. I will send the information of the person to your husband in an hour, inform him to get ready.” The figure sat and placed the files on the glass table as she spoke.

“Do I have to get ready?” She inquired as she stopped at the door

“No, you won’t be needed for this mission. Cobra is more than enough.” The sitting figure spoke in assurance as she snapped her fingers, turning the lights in the room on.

“As you wish.” The secretary left and after a few seconds passed, the big screen hanged by the wall showed the figure of a man clad in a military uniform sitting in an office.

“Good day to you Wallcroft-kun.” The figure smiled lightly as she saw the blonde man and spoke with her mother tongue, never minding if the business partner she is speaking with is a foreigner.

“<Good day to you too Yazawa-san, did the people you sent finish their job.>” The man replied back perfectly.

“No, they didn’t find what they were looking for and it seems to be what we had predicted. A trap that was meant for you to be framed with if you had sent your boys.”

“<I knew it, politics is such a scary place to be in.>” The man joked as if the situation didn’t bother him at all.

“Shouldn’t you be worrying that your daughter got kidnapped instead of worrying about something else?” Madam Yazawa also replied in a joking manner and was clearly amused by what was happening in England, “My girls say that they have found one of her escorts though and now knew the exact location where the scumbags had hid her.”

“<No, I trust your daughter since she grew up to be like that man and the number of missions she along with her team did is more than enough evidence that they won’t mess up.>” He rotated his chair and faced the window, “<I just hope those bloody bastards didn’t do anything weird to her, if they did then your girls have the permission to go wild.>” and whispered his intentions.

“I don’t think that your political enemies would be that stupid to mess with you who are the Commander of the SAS.” She calmly spoke to dissipate the brewing fury of the man on screen. “Anyway, I don’t think that’s the only reason on why you had bothered calling me… Is something the matter?”

“<Haha, nothing seems to get by you, I actually plan to send one of my boys to your side in a year or if the situation is favorable then maybe a few months, is that okay?>” He rotated his chair to face the desktop, placing his head on his crossed hands and stared straight to her eyes.

“I don’t have a problem with it but can I ask the reason for your sudden request?” Madam Yazawa inquired as she began on checking the files she had put on the table.  

“<You will get to know the reason when he arrives…>” There was a knock heard that resounded, “<It seems that I need to go, it was nice talking to you again Yozora-san… Good bye.>” And the communication was cut off.

“Oh my, not even giving me the time to say my farewell… Tyler-kun sure is a busy man.” Madam Yazawa chuckled lightly as she put down the folders and closed her eyes and leaned on the sofa while reminiscing forgotten peaceful days.

“Dear, your close friends had become fine people and your little girl is smiling truly once again.” An expression of melancholy was last seen on the face of the boss before shifting back to a neutral expression when a knock resounded once again in the silent gigantic room.

AN: So that's 15k words of... Honestly something... And the end part is anticlimactic for my tastes...

[wotzup]

CH9- In the village

"Pigyah!" Ruby hid behind Leah as the abandoned village came into view. The village looked gloomy and dark as if it was hiding some secret as it loomed over them. The thought of entering that scary place made Ruby trembled in fear. All she wanted right now was her sister, telling her she would make out safely, or maybe a pat on the head by her sister telling her that she did well. Ruby had been stuck in her train of thoughts till she heard Umi clear her throat continuing whatever she was saying before. "-if you go through here you will most likely reach the other side." Umi said as she pointed to a path that led into the right side of the village out if the three paths. "What do mean by most likely?" Leah asked. "The paths change. Usually it's this one that leads to the other side." Hanayo explained leaving Leah and Ruby absolutely terrified. "What happens if it doesn't lead to the exit?" Leah asked tentatively. "You wouldn't want to know nya." Rin stated. Ruby didn't even want to know if that did happen, all she knew was whatever would happen wouldn't be good.

"It's a risk that you must be ready to take." Umi continued, "You will not be able to get on the other side if you back out. The village tests you. If you back off then there is no escape, but if you show that you are ready to face anything the exit will be shown to you, though this happens to a handful of people."

Ruby shuddered in fear as she heard the words flow from Umi's mouth. It was all a game of chance. She held on to Leah tighter. If Dia was here she would help her get out of this mess. Sure she had Hanayo, Rin and Leah whose presence comforted her but she missed Dia's. A horn blew from afar. Ruby had no clue what it meant except that it was some kind of battle cry like when the bandits attacked the forest the previous night. Umi seemed to panic. "Kotori..." Umi's eyes widened. Ruby did know it wasn't a good sound. "I knew I should have stayed with her." she muttered as she took her bow in her hands from her shoulder and gripped it tightly. "I'm sorry I can not guide you through the village but I need to go." Umi bowed. "Go nya." Umi ran as fast as she can back to the Forest of Birds.

"We should be moving before the paths change nya." Rin said as she rushed into the village. "Wait Rin chan!" Hanayo said as she ran behind Rin signalling the two to follow. Ruby held Leah's hand tightly and followed Hanayo. The journey to their friends and sisters' was not going to be easy.

"Y-Yoshiko chan!?" Hanamaru turned around as she heard a thud. "I'm fine." she chocked holding her neck. Hanamaru kneeled by Yoshiko. Her skin was burning hot. 'It wasn't like this a few moments ago zura!' Hanamaru tried to cool her nerves. This was just bad. Her friend now had a fever that came out of the blue and she had no clue how she could help. Maybe those books that she read would help her. "No your not zura. We should stop for sometime zura." Yoshiko tried to pick herself up, "Nonsense. A fallen angel won't be affected by-" Yoshiko fell flat on her face. Yoshiko groaned as she sat on her knees rubbing her nose. Hanamaru sighed as she shook her head to her friend's vain display of determination. "C'mon Yoshiko chan let's stop I'm hungry zura." it wasn't really a lie, Hanamaru was really hungry. She needed to feed her huge stomach with some noppo bread ."Zuramaru you have a stomach as big as the underworld. And it's Yohane!" Yoshiko broke into a fit of coughing. "Careful," Hanamaru patted her back, "let's sit down zura."

They headed to one of the houses near them. Hanamaru supported Yoshiko's weight as she limped to the house. 'She smells like ashes zura.' Hanamaru thought as she relished the fact that Yoshiko was so close to her. This may have been the closest Hanamaru had been to Yoshiko, physically, in ages, not like she hated it though, even if Yoshiko was as hot as a furnace.

Hanamaru gulped as she saw the creepy house. There was something about this house that disturbed her. In fact the whole village disturbed her. A chill went down her spine as they entered it silently. Something was going to happen but she didn't know what.

The house seemed like it was for a family of four. In the middle of the house was a dining table with four chairs. Close by was a small empty kitchen. Behind it was a bed and beside that was a mirror. All of the things in the house were covered with dust. 'Seems like they left a long time ago zura.'

They stumbled across the house to the bed where she laid Yoshiko after coughing while wiping the dust from the bed. Her shoulders hurt and so did her legs which felt as if they were as heavy as lead. She wanted to complain about the pain but she kept quiet knowing that there was someone else who was suffering even more than she was. To reduce the pain she set down the heavy bag full of supplies down. Her aching shoulders thanked her for her generosity.

"You want anything to eat zura?" Hanamaru asked looking up at Yoshiko as she kneeled by the bag. "Ah yes I can feel the flames of-" "Here zura." Hanamaru placed some bread on her lap knowing that Yoshiko would be hungry, the last time she ate was in the morning before the left for the village. "I wasn't done!" Yoshiko glared. Hanamaru sat by Yoshiko munching on her bread. She could feel her stomach thanking her for finally putting some food inside the energy drained system. "I wonder how the others are doing zura..." Hanamaru said, her mouth full, staring at the empty table. The group had to split because they were met by crossroads. Chika, Riko and You going on one, Mari, Dia and Sarah going on the other and the final one was them. "They are my little demons, of course they are alright. They are strong just because we were separated from them doesn't mean they will fall into the clutches of Hades' wrath." Yohane said before coughing again. "I hope so zura." Hanamaru said biting once again into her bread.

You dragged her feet on the gravel path. She wanted to be at the beach and be one with ocean and swim to the depths of the ocean. Right now even the deepest darkest places of the sea seemed brighter than this place. She hated anything dark and gloomy including this abandoned village. She had never really liked the place from the start and now she was hating even more. No it was not because of suddenly falling ill just like Yoshiko and Sarah for no reason, it was maybe because of what she realized.

Never had she realized it before, till this very moment. Even when the three of them went on a quest she hasn't realized it, but when she remembered the quest it only fueled her emotion of jealousy.

All that Chika did was spend her time with Riko, talk about Riko, Riko this, Riko that. Chika was stuck to Riko as if the two were two opposite poles of magnets. It started to get on You's nerves. You wasn't a person who would easily have such feelings but losing her childhood best friend for a person who came out of nowhere, hurt her. Chika meant so much to her and she was drifting away from her.

Riko wasn't a bad person. You knew that like the back of her hand. In fact You liked her, a lot. You admired the red head yet she couldn't help but feel jealous. Why did she spend so much time with her? Wasn't You good too?

You had always taken pride in her tattoo. Yes, her tattoo. She had gotten it a long time ago when she was just a kid. It was of an orange, obviously meaning it was Chika, right? Then why didn't Chika look at her the way she did? They are soul mates, right?

You looked at the duo who was walking in front of her. They were talking happily, busy in their own world, completely ignoring the existence of her. Even if she neared them they would stop talking about whatever they were talking about. It hurt her. She didn't want to be ignored. She didn't want to be forgotten.

She heard something fall behind her. Curious, she turned back. There was nothing. She raised an eyebrow, waiting for what ever it was to strike. Chika and Riko hadn't gone much farther ahead but didn't care at that point. She needed to get out of here alive. Suddenly from behind she was assaulted by a pair of dexterous hands that covered her nose and mouth. You struggled against the grip but he was just too strong. She struggled and struggled. She tried to use her powers but the man deflected it. She tried to scream but her throat and lungs burned from the lack of air. What ever the man had rubbed on his hands was blocking her airways. She began to wheeze for air. She moved her mouth to speak but no words would leave her mouth. The man suddenly turned them in front where You could see her friends. She watched as the two girls in front moving ahead without her. 'No don't leave me...' she thought as her legs gave in. They still hadn't turned around, even though she fell with a thud, holding her throat. Her vision was becoming hazy. The last thing she knew was she was picked up and taken away by him.

Hanamaru's breath was erratic and her eyes were wide open. She turned to Yoshiko who had a faint smile in her face. "Thanks Zuramaru." she said before closing her yes and immediately drifting off to sleep. 'Yoshiko chan has faced a lot zura.' she looked at the girl who looked peaceful in her sleep unlike what she had faced. Hanamaru had no clue how she ended up over there but she did.

She had been absorbed in her book when Yoshiko began screaming in her sleep. Hanamaru was startled. Thinking it was a bad dream Hanamaru decided to use an trick that they use in books. She gave Yoshiko a hug and said some pacifying words.

She stayed like that till Yoshiko calmed down. 'Yoshiko chan is so cute zura.' she smiled sweetly as she got up, picked up her book and went back again reading her book. The book was about medicine. One might find it boring but Hanamaru found it interesting. With just a few ingredients you could cure then smallest wound to the biggest one. She was reading one that may help reduce Yoshiko's fever and it just so happens that she had all the ingredients in her bag.

Mentally fist pumping she picked up her bag from the ground and searched for the ingredients checking each one off the list as she placed it down near Yoshiko on the bed. All she needed now was to crush the ingredients and pour it on it her mouth.

With hope, Hanamaru went into kitchen in search of a pestle and mortar to grind everything to make the concoction. Maybe it was her luck but she did find it but it was dusty, that wasn't a problem though because she washed it with a bit a of water from the containers in the bag.

And then she was done. A wonderful concoction that would help Yoshiko feel all better. Hanamaru did feel bad seeing her soul mate suffering. Well she was going to end it with the help of medicine and books!

"Open wide zura." she said as she slightly parted Yoshiko's lips filling Yoshiko's mouth with the medicine which she gulped down almost immediately. She was confident Yoshiko would feel better. Just before she could pick up the book she heard Yoshiko wail again. Hanamaru's eyebrow twitched as her hand hovered over the book. She really wanted to know what would happen if you were to add a drop of dragon's tears to a wildflower.

Hanamaru had only touched Yoshiko's arm and bam, Hanamaru had suddenly entered Yoshiko's dream. Hanamaru stumbled back startled by the sudden change. A pair confused pink eyes looked at her. Hanamaru thought it was a magic trick. "Zuramaru what are you doing here?" Yoshiko asked wide eyed. "You were screaming and I tried to calm you down and here I am zura." she remembering Yoshiko had a streak of bad luck when it came to her magic at times, her eyes narrowed as she placed her hands on her hips and had a teasing smile in her face. "Is this one of your magic tricks?" "I have not summoned you my little demon. And my magic is not what you see in a kid's magic show!"

"One day I'll return back home to the heavens away from this lowly land." they heard a voice from behind had cut off what Hanamaru was going to say. It was from kid Yoshiko in her dream. She was standing on the roof of a cottage surrounded by people who were asking her not to fall. Hanamaru had to stifle a giggle. The real Yoshiko glared at her with pout. Her face was as red as Ruby's hair. "Can they see us zura?" Hanamaru asked. "No."

"Good. I don't want them to hear me of I laugh at your antics zura." Hanamaru snickered. Yoshiko slapped her lightly on the shoulder. "My life isn't funny." Yoshiko grumbled. They stood quietly after that watching the dream Yoshiko go on about the heavens. From behind her mother approached and grabbed her, absolutely annoyed with what Yoshiko had done. Hanamaru giggled again at the scene.

The scene began to fade and behind them they could hear dream Yoshiko and now a dream Hanamaru as well. "Zuramaru we're going to build a castle." the dream Yoshiko announced. "Zura?" the dream Hanamaru looked up from her book.

"This was at preschool wasn't it zura?" Hanamaru asked, a small smile growing in her face. Yoshiko hummed. Hanamaru remembered what happened after that. They built a small castle out of sand. Then the wind blew it down to dust again. Yoshiko had began to cry but said it was the curse of the Gods that brought the fortress of Yohane down. It was one of her fond memories. "You were so cute zura." "Shut up."

The scene changed again and this time they were a bit older, maybe around five or six years old. The dream Yohane cackled. "My oldest littlest demon I give this feather of darkness as a symbol of our contract." dream Yoshiko pulled out the feather from her hair and placed it Hanamaru's. "I will protect it with my life zura!" dream Hanamaru said with a promising look. Hanamaru remembered that feather even now. She could feel it within the pocket of her robes. She had always kept it safe, carrying it along with her where ever she went.

The real Yoshiko clutched Hanamaru's hand. And started to run in the dream. "Where are we going zura!?" Hanamaru asked as they passed through the people minding their own work. Yoshiko didn't say anything but whatever it was, made Yoshiko cry. Hanamaru could see the tears fall down from her face plopping on the ground as they ran. Hanamaru guessed that she wasn't going to answer anything at that moment. She felt like stopping Yoshiko and hugging her but she didn't want to stop Yoshiko in her tracks. With a heavy heart she beared the pain of seeing the one she love cry.

They stopped in front of the door of a small cottage just like any other in the village, just that this was in front of the royal training grounds. "Zuramaru we're going in." Yoshiko said with a determined look. Tears had stopped flowing but there was still a sad expression on her face. "Zura?" Hanamaru still didn't get what was going on.

Hanamaru yelped as Yoshiko left her hand and walked right through it like a ghost. "C'mon Zuramaru we don't have time." Yoshiko peeped out from the door at the scared Hanamaru. Hanamaru prayed before tentatively putting her foot through the door then her whole body. 'I am never going to become a ghost zura.' she shuddered at the feeling of walking through something solid. "Zuramaru stop daydreaming and help me create a distraction." Yoshiko hissed. "Why zura?" "We are going to save them." "Who? No one's here zura." Hanamaru scanned the empty dining room. "My mother is along with her students in the bedroom." "What's going to happen zura?" Yoshiko chocked on a sob before telling her, "Ragnarok. The celestial beings of the universe would destroy it all." Hanamaru sighed. Why did she evading? Hanamaru knew something was going to happen, Yoshiko usually would say something like this whenever something bad was going to happen.

Hanamaru tilted her head. "We don't have time for this. Help me." Yoshiko said desperately moving around the house in hope of being able to grab anything. Hanamaru sighed. She had no clue what was going on but she had to go with it.

As she was doing so there was a window that overlooked the royal training grounds where she could see a familiar looking figure facing a target that was close by the house but wouldn't affect it unless you missed the target.

Hanamaru squinted, in disbelief. 'Is that... Ruby chan zura?' Hanamaru shook her head. No she might have been hallucinating. She looked again this time the red haired girl let out a column of fire at the target but missed it completely. The only people in the kingdom who could control and create fire like that was the Kurosawa clan and as far as she knew Ruby was the only red haired female in the family.

The fire ball was headed straight towards them. "Y-Yoshiko chan!" Hanamaru scurried to Yoshiko who was about to enter a door. Yoshiko gave her a irritated look before looking at the window that Hanamaru was pointing at. It was almost there.

Her eyes widened as she cursed under her breath, hugging Hanamaru protectively, to which Hanamaru let out a "Zura".

The next thing she knew was that there was a deafening explosion and everything around them collapsed as it burnt to ashes. As they were ghosts the explosion didn't affect them, just that there was a tingling sensation. Hanamaru was now more than sure that she would complete whatever she needs to and then die so she won't become a ghost.

"No... no, no," Yoshiko said repeatedly, hysterical as she released Hanamaru looking around her, tears flowing down her cheeks like a river. She clutched Hanamaru's hand and went in the direction where the door stood. Yoshiko looked around desperately in the debris but whatever it was, it wasn't there. Hanamaru turned her head back in the direction where the girl had been standing. The girl was no where in sight but the grass in the path of the fireball was charred. She turned head head back when she felt the strong grip on her hand leave her.

Hanamaru felt like her heart was breaking into a million pieces as she saw the girl who put a strong front in front of others break down into tears and fell to her knees. 'So this is how the angel had fallen zura...' Hanamaru kneeled by Yoshiko hugging her by the side, mourning with her. She knew that this pain had no cure unlike her fever. "I could have saved her..." Yoshiko said between sobs after a while, "if I came a little earlier... it's all my fault."

"You're absolutely wrong Yoshiko chan zura." Hanamaru was determined to help her. She couldn't stand to see her cry like this, it was just unlike her. Yoshiko looked at her in disbelief. "It's not your fault," She looked directly into her eyes and spoke as softly as she could. "it was an accident hat no one expected, not even your mother zura. Don't blame yourself for this zura."

"But I... I..."

"Shh... it's alright zura..." Hanamaru wiped her tears. "I'm sure your mother would be proud of you zura. You rose from this state to where you are now, you've moved far ahead Yoshiko chan zura. You've become not only become an amazing sorceress but a beautiful lady as well zura." Hanamaru kissed Yoshiko on her forehead.

Yoshiko gave her a thankful look before sobbing again in her shoulder. Yoshiko could feel a huge weight off her chest. She hadn't felt so relived in ages. She missed her mother a lot but Hanamaru was right, she had grown. She met people, learnt new things and most importantly met her soul mate whom she left ten years ago. Yoshiko closed her eyes with a slight smile, relieved.

Hanamaru didn't know how the scene around her changed, but she could only guess it was connected to Yoshiko. It was what happened afterwards. Meeting Nozomi in the forest as a defenceless six year old, learning magic as she traveled, all of it seemed to be shown to her. Yoshiko was revealing everything to her. Hanamaru only felt touched by the gesture and overwhelmed by the memories. Yoshiko had faced so much, much more than a normal girl of their age. She became determined to support her no matter what. Hanamaru felt a boiling pain in her back as she saw all of this and she knew it meant one thing.

And then again Hanamaru was sent back to reality. Gasping, she sat up straight, holding her spinning head. It was dizzying to take up so much in such little time.

Back to the present, it was silent and calm unlike her mind which was stuck in the memory of the dizzying experience. But she needed to check something. She stood up abruptly heading up to the dusty mirror. Not caring one bit, she used her robes to dust off the dust from the mirror. It was the time of truth. She hesitantly hiked up her robes, turning her back towards the mirror, shivering a bit as the cold air hit her skin. And there it was in it's full glory, her soul mate tattoo had finally been colored in. It was the wings of a fallen angel, black yet elegant and slightly detailed. Every long feather was outlined with a thin silver line and some feathers were falling from the wings. It had been ten years since Hanamaru had seen it like this. She had no clue what she did, or how she deserved such an amazing girl but she was happy, happier than she had ever been other than seeing Yoshiko in the forest after ten years.

Letting her robes down she settled back on the bed. She was finally going to read about what happened if a drop of dragon's tears were added to a wildflower.

Nothing had attacked them yet as they walked through the path quietly, their footsteps echoing. Every sound that wasn't their footsteps or breathing made Ruby jump and almost burn everything in front of her. She didn't like it, not one bit. She hadn't left Leah's comforting warm hand but she longed for her sister.

From afar they heard a thumping noise. The four immediately huddled uup back to back, ready to attack. Leah and Ruby still held hands and in the other held balls of ice and fire respectively, Rin had partially transfigured into a tiger and Hanayo was... ready to grow a huge rice field.

"It could be the bandits." Hanayo said steadying her staff. "Why would the bandits be here of all places?" Ruby asked, not so happily. She despised those bandits, always bothering everyone around them for those swords. "They love isolated places nya."

Ruby gulped visibly. "L-let's do our R-Rubesty then." she could feel Leah clutching her hand tighter sending Ruby a rush of feelings which she promptly ignored. They had to fight and for that she needed to focus. She needed to make sure she didn't burn the wrong thing just like that time.

Suddenly they heard screaming. "Pigi!" Ruby squealed and jumped onto Leah who was also screaming. Hanayo ended up growing a huge blade of rice and Rin transformed completely into a tiger and growled. "MAAAARII SAAAN!" they heard a voice yell. "It's joke Dia."

"Kurosawa san please calm down." "I will if she will stop."

"Onee chan?" Ruby said wondering how her sister was here. Or was it an illusion? "Onee sama?" Leah said as equally as confused as Ruby. They glanced at each other. Their doubts were cleared when an fiery explosion occured which was extinguished by a white cold snowy blast which was followed by a "SHINY!"

"Onee chan!" "Onee sama!"

The two ran at full speed, forgetting they were leaving two other people behind them. They didn't even care at that moment as they saw their sister's. They tackled their sister's in a bone crushing hug.

Ruby was overjoyed. She was finally in the embrace of her sister. Tears flowed from her eyes, like a waterfall. 'Are these the tears of happiness?' she felt a hand pat on her head as she sobbed into her sister's shoulder. "Ruby, you've done well." she sister complimented, patting her head. She was finally in the presence of a person who comforted her (including Leah).

She left her sister, sniffing but had a bright smile. "Ruby, I'm glad you're safe." Dia gave her a quick hug, smiling before her face contorted as she saw what Ruby was wearing. "Ruby what is this... thing you're wearing." Dia pointed.

Ruby began to explain. Kotori had fixed their old robes and made new clothes for them, effortlessly. "Your robes were easy to fix especially since the knights of your kingdoms only wear these kind of armor unlike others." Kotori had said as she handed them their fixed old robes and their new ones and asked them to wear theirs. Both of theirs were different from each other but Kotori had also made ones for their sisters which were similar to theirs. Dia and Ruby's was called the Inferno Phoenix and Sarah and Leah's were called Cold Blizzard.

Ruby's was much more revealing than Leah's. Ruby was similar to belly dancer costume. It was a fiery vibrant red and orange clothing which had tiny ornaments and sequins that reflected light. A translucent fabric similar to that of a shawl hung from the ornament on her hands and covered the rest of her body, yet it gave her free movement and added protection as the fabric was strong enough to stop any weapon striking it. It was as if Kotori had attempted to recreate fire but in the form of clothing. Ruby hoped that one day she could become her apprentice; the dresses that Kotori made had moved her and she hoped that one day that she too would reach that level.

"Ah I see..." Dia looked at her uneasy. Ruby looked to the side curious of how Leah was fairing up. Leah was crying ugly, still hugging her sister tightly who rubbed her back to calm her down. It was a heart warming sight that made Ruby's eyes well up with tears again. Ruby had suddenly got the feeling to protect this wonderful girl no matter what. It was a strange feeling but she welcomed with open arms.

"Onee sama..."

"Leah..." Sarah caressed Leah cheek lovingly before asking how she was. "Ruby, she acted nice to you, right?" Dia asked oddly calm but Ruby knew that Dia would rampage like fire if Ruby were to get hurt. Meanwhile Mai was asking her to clam down, earning a glare. "Yeah she's sweet though she hides it often." Ruby giggled as she glanced at the girl. Leah had helped her a lot and Ruby had no clue how she was going to repay her but for some reason Ruby had strange feelings that she felt for her that made her heart do somersaults whenever they had held hands or any other simple touches or if she were to talk or look or even think about her. Clearly she knew if she were to ask Dia she would dismiss it so she would have to ask another person she trusted dearly.

"Ruby, are you alright you're face is red." Dia raised her hand to check her temperature but Ruby back off saying she was completely fine to which Dia gave her a puzzled look. "Ruby san," she heard a voice calling turning her attention form her sister to her. "thank you for being by my sister. I will be grateful for what you have done." Sarah bowed. Ruby felt it to be awkward for such a renowned person bowing, so she made her stand straight. "Actually... I'm happy Leah chan was there for me. So I should be the one who has to say thank you." Ruby said, her lips curving into the littlest of little smirks, making Leah blush.

"Ah Ruby chan!" she heard a voice behind her call. She turned around at such a speed she almost cracked her neck. She could see her two friends running towards her hand in hand, Hanamaru dragging a pale looking Yoshiko behind her. She couldn't help but grin at the sight, for more than one reason. How much she missed them! "Ah Hanamaru chan, Yoshiko chan!" she half jogged to them and gave the two a hug. "I knew my little demon was powerful to shake the other celestial spheres and come on top." Yoshiko said after Ruby released them, giving a creepy laugh earning a nudge from Hanamaru. Ruby had no clue what that meant but thankful Hanamaru translated what she said. "I'm glad your safe zura." Hanamaru had tears in her eyes. She then neared Ruby's ear then whispered, "Did that girl treat you properly zura? Cause if she didn't I can ask Yoshiko chan to teach her a lesson zura."

"Hanamaru chan that's not needed," Ruby chuckled waving her hands in denial. She couldn't but wonder why everyone was asking her this question. "she treated me well, trust me." "If you say so zura."

She took a glance at Leah who looked awkward as her sister was making sure she was alright. Leah had a slight blush on her face rolling her eyes as her sister freaked out as she saw a small scratch. It reminded Ruby of her own sister, who would also do the same.

Behind her she could hear Rin and Hanayo cry. "This such a heart warming scene nya." Rin sniffled. Hanayo hummed as she wiped the tears off her cheeks with a smile. "Maru chan, Yoshiko chan-" "It's Yohane!" "-Yohane chan I'd like you to meet them, they saved us." Ruby glanced at them. They were hugging each other as they cried even more. "You mean the crying couple?" Yoshiko asked looking at them raising a brow. Ruby nodded, taking their hands, bringing them to them. Yoshiko rolled her eyes earning herself a smack from Hanamaru.

Rin and Hanayo left each other as the three stopped in front of them, Ruby introducing her friends, or more precisely Hanamaru followed by Yoshiko blabbering about hell and her status as a fallen angel and appointed Hanayo and Rin as her little demons in her army. "I-I see Yo-ha-ne chan?" Rin as I uneasy with the fallen angel's behavior. "I'm proud of you my little demon for pronouncing my name properly. I-"

"Actually her name is Yoshiko zura, she just calls herself Yohane." Hanamaru said, smiling kindly at them. "Shut up mortal!"

The rest laughed at their antics. It was funny to see Yoshiko trying to show herself as a fallen angel, from the deepest darkest place in hell and be proud of it only to be brought down to her feet by her oldest little demon Hanamaru.

Ruby felt something tap on the back of her shoulder. Ruby jumped as she screamed "pigya", almost making her incinerate Yoshiko, making the rest of the group turn around at her. Yoshiko was about to say something when the person, that was Leah, told the group to follow them back the Dia, Sarah and Mari because it was important.

Giving each other looks, the group followed Leah to Dia, Sarah and Mari who had their jaws wide open. "This is not shiny." Mari muttered under her breath.

Ruby looked at what they were looking at and her eyes widened at the sight. She held on to Dia who immediately put an arm over her. It was Chika and Riko. Both of them were covered in battle scars and bruises, limping their way towards them, supporting each other as they came closer one step at a time. Chika's eye had been blackened, Riko's arm was bleeding so much that the blood dripped on the ground making a trail. Tears flowed from Chika's eyes washing away the dirt on her face. "It's like they have been attacked by the griffins." Yoshiko said but this time Hanamaru didn't do anything. She was wondering what had happened to those two. Was it something similar to what she had Yoshiko had experienced before?

Dia managed to regain her composure and opened her mouth to ask them what had happened to them, but Chika had cut down to the chase, sobbing harder than before. Riko looked down at the floor with a frown. "We lost You chan to some bandit!"

[eserenityyyy]

When I was your Man

A/N: This was my second attempt on songfics. This time, on a more popular song. Lyrics are italicized. Enjoy~

Song Link for extra feels.

Ao3 Link

Rating: General Audiences

Fandom: Love Live! School Idol Project

Pairing: Nico Yazawa/Maki Nishikino

Words: 840

Summary: Maki sings her final song for her...

“To perform her latest song, here is Maki Nishikino”

I took a deep breath and stepped into the stage. Today, I will sing my final song for her – a little bit different from the previous ones.

I sat at the piano bench at opened the lid of the piano. I looked at the audience as I positioned my fingers on the keys. I smiled.

There at the front were my parents.

At the second row were my precious friends – Eli, Nozomi, Umi, Kotori, Rin, Hanayo, and Honoka.

At the third was… her.

I felt my heart squeeze. It still hurts after all. But I can’t back down now, I will put all my emotions in this song and hope that it will reach her.

I closed my eyes and started to play.

Same bed but it feels just a little bit bigger now

Our song on the radio but it don’t sound the same

I remembered everything.

Waking up every morning with an empty space beside me.

Hearing the songs that I made for her.

It hurts.

When our friends talk about you, all it does is just tear me down

‘Cause my heart breaks a little when I hear your name

I opened my eyes and looked at my friends.

I remembered them talking about her.

It all just sounds like ooohhh…

I smiled at them.

Mhm, too young too dumb to realize

That I should’ve bought you flowers

I remembered coming home late and tired, and she looked at me expectantly.

I didn’t know what she was expecting and tired as I was, I told her that we should sleep.

I woke up and found a text message from Nozomi. It said,

      Did Nicochi have fun with you last night?~

And held your hand

I remembered that time when she was complaining about something and I told her to just deal with it.

Should’ve gave you all my hours

When I had the chance

I remembered those days that I barely came home from university and the library.

Take you to every party

‘Cause all you wanted to do was dance

I remembered refusing to go with her at that one party of her friend because I had to study for my upcoming exams.

Now my baby’s dancing

I looked at her.

But she’s dancing with another man

A man approached and sat beside her.

I couldn’t bear seeing it so I quickly turned back to the piano.

My pride, my ego, my needs, and my selfish ways

I remembered the day she broke up with me.

Back then, I didn’t understand why she did it.

I thought I haven’t done something wrong.

‘Caused a good strong woman like you to walk out my life

But now I know, it was all my fault.

Now I never, never get to clean up the mess I made, oh…

And it haunts every time I close my eyes

And I know too that she's not coming back.

It all just sounds like ooohhh…

I closed my eyes.

Mhm, too young too dumb to realize

That I should’ve bought you flowers

It was after reading Nozomi’s text that I realized.

It was her birthday.

And held your hand

I didn’t know she had problems with her family.

Should’ve gave you all my hours

I didn’t know she was feeling lonely.

When I had the chance

I wish I could turn back time…

Take you to every party

‘Cause all you wanted to do was dance

I didn’t know she planned to make that party our bonding time that we haven’t had for a long time.

Now my baby’s dancing

I know she’s happy now.

But she’s dancing with another man

I know he’ll be better than me in loving her.

Although it hurts

It’s killing me.

I’ll be the first to say that I was wrong

I’m sorry.

Oh I know it’s probably much too late

No, it’s too late.

To try and apologize for my mistakes

But I’ll still say it over and over again.

But I just want you to know…

I felt tears forcing their way out of my eyes.

No, not yet.

I still have to finish this...

I looked back at her and to the man beside her.

I hope he buys you flowers…

Please, take care of her.

I hope he holds your hand…

Love her.

Give you all his hours…

When he has the chance…

The way I wasn’t able to.

Take you to every party…

‘Cause I remember how much you loved to dance…

I turned back to the piano.

Do all the things I should have done

I closed my eyes.

When I was your man

I opened my eyes.

Do all the things I should have done...

I looked back at her.

Please, my tears, let me finish this...

When I was your man...

I gave her my warmest smile as I felt my tears stream down my face.

I wish you all the best.

I’m sorry.

I love you, Nico-chan.

[24hs]

break open, break through

summary: Kotori meant to leave her heart locked after a heartbreak. (Umi Sonoda hasn’t received the note.)

Maki breaks hearts along her way to true love. (Nico Yazawa is hiding her heart, but it gets dragged onto her sleeve.)

pairings: kotoumi / nicomaki

genre: fluff / angst

words: 10 k

warnings: very mild description of nsfw topics ; swearing 

also readable on ao3

please listen to this song for kotoumi and to this song for nicomaki ~

The most striking thing about Maki Nishikino is her hair.

It’s not the most attractive thing, of course - that would be her very pretty, very rare smile, Kotori decides -, but it does catch everyone’s eyes.

Kotori is not an exemption ; when a flash of bright red hair passes her, she’s fallen.

Their kisses are intense, in all kind of ways. Sweet and slow pink, they warm Kotori’s stomach ; hot and fast and red, they make Kotori pull Maki closer.

Their thing - affair, relationship, love, whatever it is - feels right.

(At least to Kotori, it does.)

“Hey”, Kotori places a quick kiss on Maki’s cheek when she arrives in the bar. She doesn’t notice Maki quickly whipping away the kiss’s ghost with a tissue while she’s arranging a chair for herself.

“Have you been waiting for long?”, Kotori asks, sitting down next to her. They’re by the bar, near the exit. The building is pretty empty - besides Kotori and Maki, there’s only a few guys and a black haired girl in it.

“Not at all”, Maki answers, taking off her jacket and revealing a short top underneath. Kotori’s gaze lingers on her cleavage for a moment before getting comfortable on her own.

“Do you want anything?” Kotori waves with a small menu in her hand, and Maki nods.

They order their drinks, and when they’re eventually sipping on them, silence falls over them like a heavy cloak.

“Hey, Maki”, Kotori suddenly asks, “what’s your favorite color?”

Maki kind of chokes on her drink. “Excuse me?”, she coughs, face red.

“Your… your favorite color”, Kotori slowly says, taken aback by her reaction, “What is it?”

“Why does it matter?”

Kotori can’t help but frown. Everything else with Maki comes easy to her, but talking is hard. Kotori isn’t dumb - she can see Maki has problems opening up, not to her especially, but to everyone.

“Maki?”

“I don’t want to be your girlfriend.”

Apparently, Kotori isn’t smart enough to see that Maki doesn’t want to open up.

“I’m sorry”, Maki breathes, “but I’m not exactly… looking for something serious. I’m really sorry.”

Kotori blinks. “It’s alright”, she croaks, ignoring her heart stopping in her chest, “I will just…”

She grabs her jacket with awkward, clumsy movements and stands still in front of Maki for a moment before she hurries out of the bar. (She wishes she hadn’t looked back to Maki. She really didn’t have to see the relieve in her almost-girlfriend’s eyes.)

When Kotori steps out of the bar, she closes her ears and exhales.

She heads to her holiday home, ignoring her stinging eyes and throat and her heart, whose pieces seem to rip her chest apart.

Maki doesn’t have a favorite color.

She chased away one perfectly well, pretty, charming and smart girl because she didn’t want to tell her about her favorite color. (And she doesn’t even have one.)

Kind of reminds her how she broke up with that Rin girl because she bought them matching key chains.

(To be fair, they were two cats with lots of hearts and it was pretty romantic and it made Maki panic.)

Maki has found out that she’s not a relationship person in those past years. (She has gotten tired of hurting people, even if they don’t mean the world - or anything - to her. She does feel kind of bad for it.

Besides that, the plates that are sometimes thrown at her by her ex-lovers are mostly her own and she’s way too lazy to buy new ones after every breakup.)

She sips on her drink, trying to put Kotori’s left cocktail out of her eyesight by placing it on the very edge of her table.

She’s so focused on a mind without the incident from earlier in it she doesn’t notice the black haired girl from earlier sitting down on Kotori’s - former - seat.

Maki stares at her as the stranger grabs Kotori’s abandoned cocktail and takes a sip.

She has big, red eyes and the pink lipstick on her lips is slightly smudged. “Wow, she has a good taste”, she says.

“Excuse me?”, Maki deadpans, still stunned by this sudden appearance.

“I’m talking about the drink.” Pink Lipstick’s mouth turns into a smirk and Maki’s expression changes to a frown.

“I’ve noticed you curving that poor girl, so I thought I should check on you. Are you alright?”

Maki blinks, then she blurts out, “Are you trying to flirt with me?”

The faintest of a blush crosses Pink Lipstick’s face. “I’m not, I swear. Are you alright?”

“Are you trying to be my friend?”

Maki gets stared down, before she gets asked, “you’re kind of blunt, aren’t you?”

Maki leans back on her seat, crossing her arms.

Pink Lipstick crunches her nose. “You just looked kind of sad earlier, but if you don’t to believe that, I can go. Sorry for bothering.”

She stands up, and Maki’s mind goes blank - she panics, and out of an instinct she grabs the girl’s’ sleeve.

“Hey”, Maki says.

(Oh god, Nishikino, don’t go there.)

“I’m alright, I swear, but sit down.” It comes off as an order when Maki wanted it to sound friendly, so she clears her throat and tries again, “I could need a friend right now. Please, stay.”

(Maki’s secret vow not to hurt anyone vanishes slowly into the back of her head as Pink Lipstick sits down again and they start talking.)

Kotori zips up her jacket when she steps out of the car, the sudden cold stinging in her face.

Unfortunately, time passes quickly when you’re doing only thing - grieving, in Kotori’s case, over what could have been -, so the summer was over in the span of a tear falling to the ground. (She would know.)

She glances upon the building, students chattering and laughing next to her while making their way to it.

Kotori sighs and heads to the inside.

She doesn’t tell anyone about Maki. Partly because she can’t bear to spend another thought on her, partly because she feels she’s already over her. Bringing up the whole topic again, having to chew all through it again, it would be useless. (That’s what she tells herself.)

“Kotori! How were your holidays? It sucks that you had no reception in your holiday home”, Honoka greets her, gesturing her to sit down next to her. They’re having lunch, Kotori hasn’t seen her for weeks since she spent her vacation abroad. Also, from what Kotori can tell, they don’t seem to have any classes together. (Which “totally sucks”, as Honoka puts it, since “without Kotori she’ll be falling asleep in class”.)

“I missed you too”, Kotori smiles, sitting down. “How have you been? Did you have to help a lot in the shop?”

Honoka pouts. “You have no idea! I’ve barely relaxed this summer.”

Kotori laughs with her when Honoka complains about making sweets all day, and she does feel a bit lighter. (It’s kind of like the pause in between heavy rain ; in which the grave, gray clouds are still hanging in the sky, but in which there’s also light. In which you can see.)

They’re interrupted by Hanayo hurrying to their table. “Hey”, she squeals, out of breath, and lets herself fall into the chair next to Kotori. “Second years have different lunch times than third years now”, she sighs, looking so miserable Kotori grabs her hand and squeezes it under the table. “You’ll be fine, Honoka and I will just hang out here a little longer so we can spend more time with you.” Hanayo gives her a shy smile, and Kotori beams back.

“I forgot we’re third years now”, Honoka cries, burying her face in her hands. “We’re going to graduate this year, Kotori!”

“I haven’t forgotten”, Kotori chuckles, patting Hanayo’s hand one last time before gently letting go.

“I feel like a lot is going to happen this year.”

They’re on their way home, well, at least to the Nishikino’s holiday resident, and it’s dark and it’s cold and Maki has the time of her life.

Nico’s the name of the girl with the black hair, red eyes and the smudged pink lipstick, Maki has discovered. She has found out a lot of things in the past hours - she knows that Nico is on the island for a vacation job, not for actual vacation, because she has three siblings and no money at all. (Yet they don’t live far from each other, neither on the island nor at home. If Maki believed in it, she would call it fate.)

She learns that Nico likes to make people laugh, she can tell by the way Nico is acting things out, everything slightly exaggerated, and she doesn’t make Maki laugh, but smile a lot. (Maki feels like she hasn’t genuinely smiled in a long time.)

Nico’s favorite color is pink.

They arrive way too early.

“Thanks for today”, Maki says, and she means it. She hasn’t thought about Kotori or the nagging guilt in her stomach in a while, and it’s all thanks to Nico.

“No problem.” Nico bites on the inside of her cheek. “Can I see you again?”

It’s shy, sweet almost, but something in Maki shifts at her words.

“I’m.. no”, she splutters, and Nico raises an eyebrow. (Yet Maki sees the hurting in her eyes. She hates it.)

“I can’t see you again because I can’t allow you to fall in love with me.”

There’s a pause.

“You must really think you’re the shit, Nishikino.” Nico tilts her head, and her usual smirk appears in her eyes again, her eyes not revealing any of the hurt they have portrayed before. “I’m not going to fall in love with you. I promise.”

She pulls out a pen from her bag, grabs Maki’s wrist and writes her number on her hand, in thick black.

Maki glances at the prettily swung numbers, the written out swear Nico has given to her.

“See you, Nishikino.” Nico stands on her toes and gently kisses her on the cheek, but it’s alright, because she promised. Maki trusts promises.

I’m not going to fall in love with you.

Maki believes in promises.

So she pulls Nico into her house, despite Nico having wanted to go home earlier, and they spend the night on Maki’s bed, talking and smiling and being.

Kotori meets the new student right after she thinks of Maki, and maybe that’s why she can’t get her out of her head.

Her hair is of a deep blue, black almost ; it reminds Kotori of the ocean’s color before a storm.

A flash of dark blue hair passes her and she’s-

“Good morning“, the students starts talking after a gesture of their teacher. Her voice is quiet, but stable and calm, and it gives Kotori goosebumps. (It’s kind of similar to mild wind, idly embracing your skin.)

“My name is Umi Sonoda. I’ve attended Otonokizaka so far, but due its closure, I’ll be going to this school.”

Umi Sonoda.

Kotori suppresses mouthing the words ; she knows anyway it’ll sound as pretty as flowers blooming in her mouth.

(Oh god, Kotori, don’t go there.)

Dismissed by their teacher, Umi walks up to the only empty seat the classroom has, in front of Kotori.

(Her steps are firm and quick without looking hasty ; Umi Sonoda has got the characteristics of a panther, Kotori decides.)

They maintain eye contact, and even if it’s only a second, Kotori feels her heart electrify. Umi’s eyes are golden, and combined with her blue hair, Kotori’s immediately reminded of a Van Gogh painting.

(Something beautiful, but you can’t truly put your finger on it ; it’s slipping right through your hands.)

Umi averts her eyes and Kotori can breathe again.

She spends the rest of the lesson drilling her stare into Umi’s back of her head.

“Do you know anything about the student that transferred to us?”, Kotori asks Honoka. They’re walking around in the city, without a specific goal as they had just eaten dinner.

“No, I barely know her, really”, Honoka thinks about it, “what was her name? Umiko?”

“Just Umi”, Kotori breathes, then she nods, shaking off her tension. “She’s in my chemistry class.”

It’s just a whisper, but, “she’s pretty.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Ah, nothing. Hey, do you wanna go to the arcade?”

“Can I ask you something?”, Nico asks. Under different circumstances, Maki’s heart would start racing - or stop, maybe -, but they’re playing Mario Kart and despite never having played it before, Maki has gotten really into it. (Like, really really. She didn’t talk to Nico for a whole lap after same snatched the first place from her.)

“Sure”, Maki mumbles under her breathe before she pans her plastic steering wheel to the left. (Bowser heavily rams Baby Peach and Nico scoffs. “Asshole, I was in first place!” Maki grins victoriously.)

“What happened between you and that girl in the bar you broke up with?”

Bowser crashes into a wall.

“I- really don’t-“, Maki stutters, her remote almost falling out of her hands.

“No, I’m sorry”, Nico quickly adds. “Just don’t. You don’t have to tell me.”

Maki bites the inside of her cheeks. Kotori’s name has been spilled, but she didn’t bother to explain details. (Why she bent and broke her heart like a glow stick, for example.)

“Okay.” They remain playing, pushing buttons, the sound of it echoing in the room. The television’s light flickers, reflecting on Nico’s stoic face in every color Maki can imagine.

It’s nice with Nico, because while she’s demanding (Maki’s time and attention), she’s leaving her alone about things she doesn’t really want to share. (Her parents. Rin. Kotori.)

It’s especially nice because Maki knows Nico is going to leave her if she does eventually.

Nico’s good night kiss is slightly misplaced, not on her cheeks, but rather on Maki’s right mouth’s corner. (Maki doesn’t mind, not physically, and if Nico hadn’t made that promise, she would mind a lot emotionally. But she did promise.)

Maki thinks of this almost kiss for the whole night.

(It’s not an good idea.)

Every time chemistry class is barely over, Kotori wants to reach out for Umi, but Umi is basically out of the room once the bell has rung, so her hand remains lingering.

It’s only the first school week, and Umi is all Kotori can think about (stoic, soaring, stunning Umi), so she eventually takes action.

And signs up for the student council.

Kotori feels guilty for it - who does bureaucratic school work to distract oneself from a breakup that wasn’t even a breakup to begin with? (After all, Maki never said they were exclusive.)

Yuuka, a third year whom Kotori hardly knows and also the head girl, welcomes her with a warm smile to the first meeting Kotori encounters as a member.

Kotori vaguely thinks about how she signed a contract by which she has to stay in this club until she graduates before stepping into the room.

To see Umi Sonoda sitting at the table, staring at her like a deer in headlights.

Kotori exhales and slowly makes her way to the one empty seat left, which is between Yuuka and - of course - Umi.

Clearing her throat, Kotori sits down, straightening the pleats on her skirt. She sees Umi shooting her a look from the corner of her eye, so she gives her a small smile. (Umi quickly averts her gaze, and Kotori’s smirk vanishes.)

“I’m glad everyone could gather today.”, Yuuka starts, standing up. “Everyone, this is Kotori Minami, our new secretary, and this is Umi Sonoda, who will be our treasurer from now on. They’re both third years.” She turns her head to the new members. “I’m Yuuka, if you didn’t know already, and I’m the club president. Koyuki and Yuuri here are the vice presidents.”

She sits down, reaching for the tower of piled paperwork in front of her. “Okay, first on the agenda is…”

Kotori tries to focus, she really does - she even half turns her back to Umi so she can’t even see one strand of blue hair -, but, sadly, it’s not working. She can feel Umi’s breath on her back. (She can’t, but it sure as hell feels like it.)

This was going to be a long, long year.

Maki likes to think that Nico has become her best friend because of two main reasons.

One, they’re close.

Maki wakes up, she’s there, having slept over, mascara still on her eyes. Maki does homework, she’s with her, playing games on her phone, waiting for Maki to be done. When they don’t stuff together, they do their stuff separately, in the same room. In fact, the only times Maki is alone when she goes to school, but even then Nico sometimes waits for her after her last lesson. (She acts coolly, of course, but Maki notices that she has sweat stains under her arms and that her breathe is unsteady, so Maki figures she runs all the way from her near high school. When Maki pointed it out to Nico with the biggest smirk on her face, she just flushed and mumbled something about “working out and getting to Maki simultaneously”. Maki’s flattered and she feels kind of proud. Proud of being worth someone’s else’s time so much they will run to you after class just to catch you in time.)

Two, she’s kind of Maki’s only friend.

And only means best, right?

(Maki tries not to think that by this logic Nico’s also her worst friend. It just reminds her of the fact that Nico is going to leave her, too.)

Being with Nico is extremely comfortable. Maki has never found that kind of amenity anywhere - it was hidden in her piano’s keys, of course, but its effect vanished quickly when Maki noticed the sound echoed hollowly in the empty house. Playing Chopin’s fantaisie impromptu dragged her heart down, so she stopped playing at all.

Nico is Maki’s music - luring her into a mind without problems, a piece of work she appreciates with a heart on her sleeve.

Which is ironic, because Maki isn’t honest, she never is.

But it’s nice to pretend for a little while.

(Maki turns the music louder.)

Kotori’s life gets a little worse when her chemistry teacher divides the class into groups and she’s forced to work with Sonoda Umi for two weeks.

They are allowed to do whatever they want, basically ; because the first chemistry exam was written recently, their teacher let the class have some fun and work on projects they could decide about themselves.

Kotori and Umi sit in silence while every other team has started picking up books, searching for ideas and chatting.

Kotori clears her throat. “So”, she chirps, “do you have any ideas?”

Umi doesn’t look her in the eyes when she answers, “the teacher probably had something in mind that will grab everyone’s attention right away.”

Kotori hums, giving Umi a encouraging smile even though Umi doesn’t see it.

“Maybe something that takes time to develop until it finally breaks out?”

Kotori says it carelessly, without really thinking about the content of her words, but it’s the trigger for Umi looking at her for the first time today. (Hell, the first time in weeks.)

“Like a volcano?”

Kotori blinks before putting up a smirk again. “Exactly like a volcano.”

Umi’s weird, Kotori decides, but she’s not one to judge.

One minute, Umi talks in a quiet, but strong voice, interacts with Kotori and looks her in the eyes ; the other, she avoids Kotori at all means. All the time, she’s kind and thoughtful and calm, and it’s very attractive, no matter how much Kotori tries to deny that.

Kotori has thought about why Umi closes herself off Kotori in those minutes, and she decides it’s because Umi doesn’t want her near. Sometimes Kotori brushes her hand or leg while moving, and she can see in the way Umi flushes she doesn’t especially like it. Kotori feels terrible for it, vowing every time not to put her into distress again, but something in her needs to touch Umi Sonoda, to feel her under her fingertips, and Kotori isn’t sure how much longer she’ll be able to resist.

The first time Maki’s caution slips is also the first time she gets to kiss Nico Yazawa.

She doesn’t think much about it ; it’s kind of a accident anyway. A mess. (But it’s her mess. And when the surprise in Nico’s eyes fades and gets replaced by a soft warmth Maki can feel in her stomach, she doesn’t feel as bad as she should.)

It’s not perfect.

They had taken a run together, and Nico’s bangs stuck to her forehead and she was barefaced - Maki looked as bad -, and because Maki was so happy to had finally finished the lap, she put Nico in a headlock, laughing when Nico halfheartedly protested. Nico pinched her and Maki flinched so hard she falls to the ground. (Nico gasped in worry until she sees Maki’s only laughing harder, so she got down on her knees as well, grinning.)

And Maki’s saw Nico’s pale, greasy skin, sweat on her nose, and a smile bigger than her heart, so she leaned in and kissed her.

It’s far from being what Maki would call a great kiss - Nico doesn’t kiss back instantly and their teeth clash - but it’s Nico. (Everything with Nico is kind of great in its own way despite the thing totally sucking, anyway.)

They don’t talk about it. Maybe if they did, Maki thinks, they wouldn’t walk this path right now.

Maki really wants to make up her mind about all of this - not to ruin yet another friendship-, but Nico has learned how to do things with her tongue and god, Maki can’t think clearly when Nico is moaning against her lips.

Maki wraps her arms around Nico. Music‘s in synch with her heartbeat, throbbing along.

She tries to catch herself before she falls into Nico’s red eyes any further, but she fails.

(Maki starts to think that maybe she does have a favorite color.)

Kotori does a lot of research whenever she’s able to ; in between exams and her bureaucratic tasks, she looks up how to create a classical, chemical volcano to impress Umi. (She has found that Umi is extremely smart, in all kind of areas, from a butterfly‘s anatomy to loanwords. Sometimes Umi looses herself in a flood of information and Kotori listens with her chin resting on her hands. In those moments, Umi turns soft and gentle and Kotori finds herself to be even more attracted to her.)

So Kotori sits in lunch, nodding and humming as an answer when Honoka is talking to her, not even noticing her best friend pouting because she’s looking at instructions for making a freaking volcano.

It’s worth it, though, when Umi looks her in the eye for another second and Kotori feels pride swelling in her chest.

“Do you think we’ll be able to finish this in time?”, Kotori asks after the bell has dismissed them from class, her brow furrowed as they step out of the classroom. Umi gives her a small smile. “It’ll be fine, don’t worry about it.” Kotori nods. They’re making their way to the cafeteria, walking side by side ; and Kotori finds herself in peace, fully embraced in Umi’s steady aura. (She hasn’t thought about Don’t-Say-Her-Name for five days.)

“Maybe we could prepare something at my place?”, she says without thinking. “You know, for the presentation. I make excellent ham rolls.” Umi chokes on air, and Kotori flushes.

“I’m- sorry, that was a joke-“, Kotori splutters, feeling guilt in her guts as she sees Umi in distress, but Umi quickly shakes her head. “No, I’m sorry, I was just- yeah, let’s”, she vigorously nods, “do that.“

Kotori notices they’re already in front of the cafeteria when multiple students push them to get through the doors, heading to the buffet. It must be a funny scene, Kotori thinks, the both of them with red heads, blocking the way.

“Then… let’s do that”, Kotori clears her throat. (Oh god, don’t repeat after her like an idiot, Kotori. Oh god, don’t blush harder.)

“Yes!”, Umi says, looking everywhere but into Kotori’s eyes. A second of silence - before they rush into different directions, not without accidentally brushing each other’s hands.

When Kotori sits at lunch, chewing a surprisingly tasty sandwich, she can’t get Umi Sonoda out of her head.

A week has passed and none of them talked about what Maki secretly calls The Incident, and Maki isn’t sure if Nico is actually fine with it. (She keeps searching for signs that she isn’t, but Nico is laughing and scoffing and breathing like she always did. Maki stops looking for those signs when something about making up symptoms, needing an excuse to leave and abandonment issues crosses her mind.)

Nico is laughing and scoffing and breathing and Maki’s a little bit closer to a panic attack with every passing day.

Maki reminds herself that Nico can’t possibly know that ; Nico does, despite her caring and attentiveness and genuine interest, not know her at all. (She doesn’t know Rin or Kotori. She doesn’t know her parents. She doesn’t know Maki.)

And they continue with whatever they have. Maki breathes kisses and Nico gentle touches, and Nico gets embraced. (To Nico, they’re sugar ; unable to hold apart, one and only. To Maki, they’re water and oil ; no matter how much time passes, it’s clear to everyone they won’t merge into each other.)

Slowly, Nico has less and less time for Maki, with her exams and siblings to take care of, and Maki‘s pissed. She doesn’t exactly feel entitled to Nico’s time and attention, but in those past weeks, she’s grown fond of her. (Maki has heard that people obsessing over their partners are usually called overly clingy or utterly possessive. Not that Nico’s her significant other. Hell, no.)

She comes home to a cold, empty house. (Her father is on a business, her mother on a wellness trip. As usual, Maki’s all alone.)

“Welcome home, Maki”, she mutters to herself, slipping out of her coat, “How was your day, Maki?”

She takes a peek at her phone. Nothing. No Nico.

Maki throws her phone on her bed.

Umi’s arriving at Kotori’s house in a second and Kotori is only half dressed, barefaced and almost in tears.

Nothing seems good enough for Umi Sonoda, easily a living art piece, not even Kotori’s favorite dress with the cute ribbons on it. (She wore that dress on her last date with Don’t-Say-h… Maki. Maybe it’s time to make someone else her favorite, Kotori thinks.)

She pulls a heavenly blue blouse out of her closet. It’s not perfect, but for now, it should be enough.

Umi enters the hall with a shy smile on her lips. (Kotori doesn’t see if she had trouble finding appropriate clothing ; in fact, Kotori is so enthusiastic about the fact that she sees Umi Sonoda that she doesn’t waste gazes at her body. They’re all reserved for her golden eyes and small smirk.)

“Hi”, Umi breathes, and Kotori beams.

“Hi”, she squeals, “come in.”

Surprisingly, they have lots of stuff to talk about. (Umi sees Kotori’s collection of recipes, accurately and well-ordered on the shelf, and suddenly Kotori finds herself in a heated discussion on whether cupcakes or cake are the more appropriate choice to bring to a family reunion.

“Cake!”, Kotori frowns. “Everybody loves cake. You can’t do anything wrong with cake.”

“With the right technique, you can impress someone with something as easy as a muffin with a topping”, Umi argues back. “I’d treat my future mother in law with cupcakes!”

“She wouldn’t be your mother in law much longer”, Kotori grins, “Not if you could have brought a perfectly fine chocolate cake.”)

They kind of forget they wanted to bake for their presentation tomorrow.

Kotori tells Umi she’s interested in design and fashion, and even shows her the portfolio she still has to send in as an application for university. Umi clearly has zero sense of those topics and it’s obvious, but she nods and asks further when Kotori’s eyes begin to sparkle. (Umi’s attentive, Kotori adores it so much. She could talk all day to her and wouldn’t mind if her mouth got all fuzzy from it.)

Umi shows her pictures of her archery competitions and Kotori is really impressed, even if she doesn’t quite can get behind the techniques ; but Umi seems happy, so she’s content as well.

And the sun sets and Kotori is happy.

Fall comes and it has become a habit for Nico to drop by after school since there’s no time to meet otherwise. (“Is it okay for me to hang at your place all evening?”, she asked, “like, don’t your parents mind?” Maki shot her a look and despite scoffing back, Nico didn’t ask another time.)

Nico doesn’t exactly notice that she’s never met Maki’s parents, and, to what Maki sees, she doesn’t even acknowledge their sole existence. Not that Maki complains.

When the leafs turn into different shades of Nico‘s eye color, Maki realizes that she’s never had a friend that long. (Rin was her friend for exactly two weeks, then they dated for a whole another one.

Kotori and her spent time platonically for three days before their first kiss.)

Nico and her had a full summer, and the very first time of their first fall. (Their first, Maki thinks, and the words taste sweet on her lips. Maybe she’ll experience another fall with Nico, and another summer. It feels weird ; planning ahead of her time when the future is still getting crafted by dreams only and not facts. But with Nico, it’s right, kind of. Maki’s not sure. But it’s the closest to security as it gets.)

Accidents happen, Maki tells herself when somehow their lips find their way to each other again.

You can survive accidents, Maki tells herself when Nico growls under her breathe and pulls her closer.

Maki thinks about Nico’s unbroken vow she made the first night they met when she gets on top of Nico.

(I’m not going to fall in love with you. Maki goes down on Nico, a grin on her face.

I promise. Nico shudders under her touch, and it makes Maki a little bit addicted.)

Maki trusts in promises. So when Nico comes in her arms, with Maki inside her, she’s safe. Their relationship is safe and everything’s fine.

Umi doesn’t avert her eyes when Kotori gives her a smile the next day, and Kotori realizes how much actual progress they have done in the past week. (Umi talks to her. Umi doesn’t treat her like a leprous person anymore.)

And they present their volcano - without any food to corrupt their teacher - and Kotori’s beaming like a little child. (They even get an A. For teamwork, mostly. Kotori has never been prouder and Umi gives her a low high-five on their way back to their desks when the teacher isn’t looking.)

“Do you want to celebrate later?”, Kotori asks when class has ended, and Umi eagerly nods. “Yeah. I have archery after school, though… maybe in the evening?”

“Sure!”

They had decided to meet up at six, when Umi has had showered and changed into free time clothing, but Kotori was so excited for their meeting she dropped off at the gym, when Umi still practiced.

(When she entered, Umi was halfway shooting an arrow ; but as she saw Kotori, she flinched and it missed. Ashamed, she waved at her Kotori, who just chuckled.)

Kotori watches Umi in awe, follows the track from arrows so fast she can’t even see them until they hit right the target’s middle. Umi’s great at this ; with ultimate grace, she’s able to focus on what’s important for her in this moment. (Straight posture. Eyeing the target. Shooting. Hitting perfectly.)

Like the other three dozen of things that make Kotori’s heart grow tighter at the thought of Umi Sonoda, her ambition is one of them. Her dedication to certain things, as well as the eye for detail and minimalism - those are traits that scream Umi Sonoda. To Kotori, at least.

“Sorry it took so long”, Umi breathes when her team has finished practice, walking up to Kotori. (Walking is the wrong term ; sprinting to her would fit a lot more.)

“It’s alright!”, Kotori chirps, “After all I came early.”

“Why did you, by the way? Did something come up?”

“No, not really, I just…”, Kotori hesitates. They’re almost at the changing rooms. “I just wanted to see you.”

She can’t see Umi’s face - Kotori is behind her as Umi is busy unlocking the door -, but she can see Umi’s ear, sticking out of her long, thin hair, turn red in a second. Kotori smiles to herself.

“I see”, Umi croaks, still facing the door and not Kotori, and finally opens it. “I’m going to shower quickly, can I leave you alone for ten minutes?”

Maybe it’s because they’ve been - physically - exposed to each other, Nico’s become bolder. (She has always been, sure, but not with Maki. Not romantically and certainly not sexually. Whatever that means, Maki thinks, when the line that’s supposed to divide those areas has blurred with their first kiss and was fully erased with the one they shared in bed.)

No, Nico doesn’t grant her peaceful space for herself anymore ; even if she doesn’t ask, Maki can see questions itching under her fingernails.

And then, she does ask.

“Maki?”, she mutters. Nico’s holding Maki’s waist, putting her in between her legs. Maki’s eyes are closed as she’s leaning against Nico, but when she hears the question to come, she snaps them open, suddenly longing for orientation.

“Yeah?”, she breathes, hoping Nico can’t feel her heart beating under her rips.

“Was I your first?”

Maki’s hand slides on Nico’s arm, gently loosening her grip because she cannot breathe.

“Your first what?”, she mumbles, then turns around so she sits on Nico’s lap, basically, to smash her lips on hers. Nico turns her head before Maki can touch her (maybe Nico is just as irresistible to Maki as she is to Nico).

“You know what I mean”, Nico says with a low voice, “I mean, I know there were other girls before me, but…” (Maki’s heart aches when she hears Nico comparing herself to anyone else, because no one can be like her, not in a thousand years.)

“There was”, Maki interrupts her before Nico can talk any further, “no one like you, Nico.” No one, she quietly thinks, the same things, but never with a taste this sweet.

It’s a bland answer, of course, but for the moment, the shallow taste of air seems enough to Nico. (Maki’s glad, but at the same time it feels like trying to bury a time bomb under a layer of glass.)

Kotori finds herself fallen heels over head by the time their second meeting has ended. Umi’s charming, smart and funny in her own, dry way ; she’s attentive and listens and Kotori has never felt more comfortable with anyone, ever. (Not even with Maki. Saying her name now feels freeing, not jailing anymore. Kotori has become an enthusiast with the mere presence of Umi Sonoda.)

Kotori knows she’s swooning all over her, like a child with a silly first crush, but she really cannot help it ; with cautious fingertips, they’re getting closer, and Kotori’s bursting from happiness. (It’s great, to be happy, to have nothing to worry about. The stage in which she isn’t in so deep for Umi Sonoda that it could break her heart to be not loved back.)

These days, she wants to ask Umi out, but she couldn’t bring the words over her tongue, through her lungs if she died. She’s still scared. Afraid that will Umi turn into her old, shy, Kotori-avoiding self again. (Kotori isn’t sure why or how she overcame those characteristics, so she’ll tiptoe around her until she finds out what the factor was.)

So whenever she can silently admire Umi’s side profile - the way she puts her hair behind her ear, the way her lips curl into the prettiest smile she’s ever seen -, the words want to blurt out, with trumpets and fanfares they need to confess Kotori’s true feelings.

Kotori also searches for signs Umi could maybe, perhaps return her feelings - it’s not that unrealistic.

(Kotori hopes, at least. Umi is not Maki, but there’s still an ounce of doubt in the back of her head, even if she’s trying to push it away.)

With a soft glance in her eyes, Kotori gazes at Umi, and her clouded heart is now sunny, shining bright.

Maki feels bad when she makes out with a stranger in the bar, but guilt has been weighing a lot on her shoulders these past months - hell, years -, so it’s not exactly hard to shove the fault to Nico.

It’s not like she and Nico are exclusive, anyway ; and Maki feels the little bit of her heart left turn into something she imagines like a pitch black abyss when she pulls the blonde girl closer (she has forgotten the name ; it never mattered, anyway).

Earlier, Maki had spilled like a bottle of ink, but, to be fair, it was Nico who pushed it from the edge.

(At least, that’s what Maki thinks. Maybe she jumped.)

If Maki’s ink, then maybe Nico is white paper that soaked all of her into herself.

“Please, Maki”, Nico had said, eyes big like a child waiting for candy on Halloween, “tell me.”

Maki didn’t have to ask what she meant, so she started at the beginning. (She isn’t sure what brought her to tell her, spill the ugly truth ; whatever it was, Maki wants it gone.)

Maki remembers the time her parents were still together only vaguely, but since memories are pretty much the only things she has got with her parents she desperately clings onto them. (She even has found a diary from when she was six, but threw it away. She doesn’t need more graphic descriptions.)

Maki matured really quickly. In elementary school, her classmates’ mothers had come up to her, complimenting her on the self made chocolate cake she made for their graduation.

Maki smiled thinly. When she had asked her mother to come to the celebration, she got cut off mid sentence, just to be scolded as her mother “had better things to do” and “no time for silly things like that, anyway”. (She didn’t ask her father for he was at work as usually. If he actually was at home, he usually would shush Maki away so he could read his newspaper in peace.)

So Maki grew up and eventually stopped going to her parents. She was only bothering them, anyway.

One time, they accidentally forgot her at a gas station when they were on their way to their holiday house. Maki had stood outside for about one hour until they came back, realizing they had abandoned her. Sometimes Maki wonders where the line between an accident and a purposefully incident was.

And then they filled in a divorce, Maki was more alone than ever. (Around that time, she hooked up with Rin, she remembers ; then, it felt natural, now it’s a painfully obvious draw to her parents splitting up.)

She told Nico that whenever someone got close (gets close), it arouses some kind of panic in her chest she doesn’t know how to shut off. (Worst thing, Maki hadn’t had a breakdown with tears and all that stuff ; she basically showed Nico her heart with a casual smirk and snorts when she told her about her deepest insecurities. She didn’t even have to look at Nico’s face to see the horror on it.)

And Maki doesn’t the feel the freedom of venting or whatever people say she’s supposed to feel.

(The only thing she feels is the blonde girl‘s tongue in her throat.)

Once Kotori has decided to ask Umi Sonoda out, she’s fallen a bit more. Maybe it’s the admission of genuine, true feelings ; maybe by time, Umi unfolds her beautiful personality with less caution.

Whatever it is - Kotori catches herself humming to songs stuck in her head and look at everything through rose-tinted glasses.

She introduces Umi to Honoka and Hanayo, who welcome her warmly into their little circle, and from this point on, Umi isn’t allowed to miss any lunch breaks. (It turns out both Hanayo and Umi are into drawing, so there’s not one ounce of the silence Kotori had excepted. She’s glad to watch them talk eagerly, chuckling when Umi’s cheeks flush as she’s gesturing wildly, spluttering words coming out too fast for her tongue. Cute.)

They also meet up with Umi’s two best friends from a nearby school ; Eli, a blonde beauty, and Nozomi, whose motherly behavior instantly sticks to Kotori. They ask her a lot, about school and hobbies, but also about Kotori’s past relationships. (When she wants to answer, Eli suddenly flinches as if someone had kicked her under the table, and Umi smiles a very victorious grin, which of course is completely unrelated.)

They’re walking home, almost hands in hands (their fingertips keep brushing each other’s, but neither one is brave enough to take the final step, to finally touch.).

“Hey, Kotori”, Umi suddenly breaks the silence, clearing her throat, “I know we changed the topic earlier, about, um, former partners, but…” She leaves the word soaring in the air, hoping Kotori to get the hit. Kotori does her the favor.

“There was someone”, she says truthfully, “but she’s not important. Anymore, anyway. I’ve…”, she eyes Umi, who doesn’t look back at her, “fallen in love with someone else.”

Umi slowly nods, still dodging her gaze. “You should ask them out”, she says quietly. Kotori’s heart drops. Does she know it’s her? But why does she sound so distressed, then?

“Yeah, I should”, Kotori mumbles to herself. Then, louder (a bit braver), “Umi Sonoda-“ Umi turns her head. “Do you want to go on a date with me?”

Kotori sees at least four emotions in one second.

One, confusion (frowning), two, resignation (“I must’ve misheard that”), three, shock, (“Oh my god, I didn’t mishear”).

Four - absolute panic.

“M-Me?”, Umi splutters, flushing so hard her ears turn pink, too.

“Yes!”, Kotori quickly reassures her, cheeks just as red. Umi looks deadly embarrassed, and suddenly Kotori isn’t sure if Umi even likes her back. (Maybe she misinterpreted, thought too much into it.)

Kotori steps back. Umi’s still dazzled.

“I’m sorry, I’ll just…” Go away. Swallow her feelings again.

Umi blinks. “Kotori.” Kotori turns on her heels, sniffling. “Yeah?”

“I’d love to.”

The words don’t come through instantly, but when they do, Kotori starts beaming.

“You do?”

“I do.”

Maki could have wore a scarf, a choker, anything to cover the hickeys on her neck. (But of course, she didn’t. Provoking her relationships to fail horribly seems almost like a signature move of her.)

In this one case, Nico sadly isn’t an exception.

They’re in bed, Nico somewhat on top of Maki, slowly kissing her neck, when she suddenly stops.

“What is it?”, Maki idly asks with her eyes closed, snatching them open when Nico doesn’t answer instantly. Nico’s staring at Maki’s exposed neck. “You didn’t have these hickeys yesterday”, she says. Maki tries to figure out Nico’s mood, but her voice is stable and her eyes, usually disclosing so many things, lay hidden in the dimmed light.

“Yeah”, Maki mutters, “they’re not from you, so…” She wraps her arm around Nico again only to get shaken off.

“From who?”

It’s just two quiet words, but Maki gets goosebumps all over her skin. “Yeri?”, she tries to remember, “no, it was Eli. Whatever.”

She tries once again to kiss Nico - maybe that’s her cruel streak, to cut people off yet never letting them fully go -, but Nico turns her head and Maki’s lips meet air.

“Are you mad at me, Nico Yazawa?” (A cynic smirk pokes the dragon’s eye.)

“Of course I’m mad!”, Nico explodes, shoving Maki from her and onto the bed. “You kissed someone else!”

Maki bobs up, supporting herself on her elbows. “So?”, she exhales, “it’s not like you’re my damn girlfriend.”

Nico doesn’t respond, and Maki narrows her eyes. “You promised, remember?”

If Maki was an sensitive person, it would have come out soft, maybe even comforting, but she really isn’t, so she says it with mockery dropping like honey from her voice.

Putting a finger in an open wound.

Maki feel herself choking on the silence. In all honesty, she has no idea what she’s doing - sheer teasing, pushing just to pull again, shoving Nico away.

“Yeah, I did”, Nico finally says, getting off Maki - her legs were starting to hurt from the weight, and because of the sudden release they feel weirdly light. Nico slips from the bed and is by the door in a second.

“Where are you going?” Maki hates how vulnerable she sounds. (Who is she to demand anything from Nico at this point, even if it’s just plain information?)

Nico stares at her blankly, before answering, “I don’t know. As long as it’s a place without you.”

Kotori gets a déjà vu from their first meeting (and now, it’s their first date!) when she, again, tries to figure out what to wear. This time she forces herself to wear her former favorite dress - the one with the ribbons -, because, maybe Umi can erase the memories of Maki. Sooth, at least. Kotori believes she can ; because it’s Umi Sonoda. Umi Sonoda can do it all, clean the mess others have thrown in Kotori’s way.

It’s awkward, but Kotori finds herself enjoying every second of it.

First station’s the cinema - such a cliche, she knows, but Kotori has never had a proper first date and she figures Umi deserves the whole way of dating, from the first date to whatever is going to bloom out of this relationship. (A closer, romantic relationship as the best outcome. Kotori’s s excited for it.)

They’re watching a romance movie, and it only shows Kotori that she has so much more things to learn about Umi Sonoda, because there’s pure horror on her face while they’re watching.

(Cringe gives Umi actual goosebumps and if Kotori wasn’t feeling so bad about it, it’d be hilarious.)

Next - dinner. Kotori wanted to eat in some fancy restaurant, but on a Friday evening everything was already reserved for people with a lot more money than Kotori has, so they have a picnic. (It’s not perfect, because it’s winter already - they’re dining in Kotori’s room, on her bed’s blanket, feeding each other with small cubes of cheese and sausages.)

Umi tells her she has never had a date she enjoyed this much.

(“Oh, I thought this was your first date”, Kotori exclaims, genuinely surprised, and Umi flushes. “It is, actually, but it’s also the best one, so…” Kotori has to suppress a laugh and Umi sulks, hiding her face under the scarf wrapped around her shoulders.)

The rest of the evening Kotori prances in her room, Umi Sonoda stays in her heart and fills it with warmth.

Nico’s has got this bad, awful, terrible habit of lying.

It’s not that she doesn’t know the consequences - she just doesn’t always think it completely through.

It’s kind of the same with her and making promises.

Middle school. She vowed her mom she wouldn’t forget to get a turkey for Christmas dinner, but she did, with her exams and all. Consequences were that she “ruined Christmas for the whole family”.

Freshman year, high school. She carelessly told her brother to help him with his history homework, but someone at work did a mistake and left a whole mess for her to take care of. When she came home, late at night, her brother was already asleep, proceeding to ignore her for a whole three days.

First quarter of college. Without thinking, Nico promised Maki Nishikino that there was no way she was going to fall in love with her.

(Of course, she did. Nico Yazawa is always bound to break promises. Maybe that’s her downfall.)

Maybe it’s Maki’s fault.

She is, after all, the most beautiful girl she has ever seen, chances are that she’s an actual angel walking on earth. (The fact that she almost spits fire when she opens her mouth are clouding these chances, but Nico is confident that even angels have their tiny flaws.)

Nico’s never been in love, never truly, so maybe that’s why sly grins and well-aimed touches have spun her head so hard she mixes up up and down and left and right. (At the same time, she’s the only person with whom Nico can breathe freely, think clear.)

When she saw Maki for the first time, she was amused by the girl sitting by herself in a bar, so obviously out of place Nico had to talk to her to put the poor girl out of her misery. Maki was nothing to her but a pretty girl that could maybe, in the future, become a friend.

(Oh, how much more she is now.)

Nico closes the door behind her and gives her a second to breathe with her blocked lungs, because that’s what the talk they had the past minutes did to her body. (Stinging eyes, tight chest, bleeding heart.)

It’s not fair.

It’s not fair that the girl she love with can deal with her so easily, can look into her eyes with a softness Nico has never seen before just to make out with some other girl.

Sometimes Maki Nishikino is an open book to Nico, melting under her touch and being so wonderfully honest with her. Other times, her mood changes in the span of a blink and she goes from clawing Nico closer to her to pushing her away with all she has.

As long as it’s a place without you.

She exhales and starts heading towards her own home.

It’s their second date and everything’s the same as before.

At the same time, it’s so much better. They’re doing baby steps of progress, Kotori imagines their bond like flexible material that’s half knitted, but can be something even prettier when it’s done. Maybe they’re like a blank canvas, the corners already painted with colorful volcanoes, cupcakes and cakes, first dates and vivid hearts. A puzzle whose borders are already built, leaving an ordered mess to solve. While Kotori did their first, Umi’s planned this date - maybe it could become their thing, she wonders dreamily -, and apparently, they’re going to a concert. (Umi likes a clear schedule more than surprises, Kotori finds out, and it’s no wonder, really. It’s quite cute, though, how sternly Umi presents her plans to Kotori while same is trying to hold her laugh.)

The band‘s is pretty unknown, but good nonetheless ; Umi hums and Kotori bounces along and every love song is about them. When the last song has ended, Umi drags Kotori (gently, or course) to a near field.

“I’ve always enjoyed looking at the stars at night”, Umi explains as she lays down, her hair spread around her head like an halo. Kotori quickly gets down as well, carefully slipping her hand into Umi’s. She sees her face blushing and smiles to herself.

“How did you get into it?”

“A girl from elementary school introduced me to it, I believe”, Umi thoughtfully answers, “I don’t remember her name, but she had this habit of baking something every time the class met up.”

Kotori briefly remembers their first baking meeting and instantly dislikes whomever Umi is talking about. (She doesn’t, sure, she couldn’t if she wanted to, but she’s close.)

“Anyway, we had a sleepover once and she showed me her telescope. That’s when I really got into it. Like, I read about all those constellations, for example- see these stars?” She points to a bunch of stars.

“That’s Andromeda. It’s stunning, isn’t it?”

“It is”, Kotori whispers, but she’s not looking at the sky.Umi turns her head when she hears Kotori’s soft voice, and Kotori leans in.

“Can I”, she turns quieter as the distance between their lips gets smaller, “hm, kiss you?”

Umi’s gaze is on her lips. “You may”, she breathes, and Kotori closes the gap, her heart bursting from happiness. Umi’s lips are softer than Kotori expected, and she melts right into it. Umi smiles into their very first kiss and snuggles closer.

Maki hasn’t seen Nico in ten days and nine nights. The days are a little bit better than the nights ; on a scale from 1 to 10 maybe a 100. (A bit better, but the nights are a 1000.)

She has probably called a thousand times already, but Nico won’t answer the phone, or at least she won’t answer Maki’s calls. (One call declined. Whatever, Maki thinks, who needs Nico anyway? One minute passed, she’s on the phone again, because she needs Nico and she needs her now and she cannot be alone in this.)

It’s her fault, that’s worst. If Nico had done her wrong, horribly wrong, Maki could have sulked and made peace with it, eventually. But now? Like this?

Maki begins to think that having Nico in her heart maybe was the best thing to happen to her. (Maki already knows that pushing Nico away was the worst decision in her whole life.)

Maki [22:16]: Hey. Are you alright? If you come over I can cook dinner for you. Maki [22:18]: I mean, I don’t actually know how to, but we’ll figure something out. Can’t be that hard, right? Maki [23:57]: You can come whenever you want, by the way. I know, it’s late already, but tomorrow’s another day. Maki [3:32]: Right? Maki [4:55]: I miss you. Maki [5:12]: Nico, please.

Everything turns awfully bland when Maki realizes that Nico won’t come back to her. The games they used to play have become boring, she freezes in her bed without Nico laying her arms around her, the four walls of her room are stifling any good thoughts that she had left.

The color pink seems to be mocking her. Nico’s silhouette haunts her whenever she tries to forget. Her voice stays in her mind all day, like a lullaby it pulls Maki into her charm. Making sure that Maki won’t ever get over her first ever, true love.

Making sure Maki won’t ever forget that’s it her own damn fault that Nico Yazawa left.

“Can I ask you something?”

Kotori says it with an appropriate gentleness, trying not to scare Umi with her vague words, and she’s glad to see Umi doesn’t even twitch a brow. (She’s so glad to see how comfortable Umi has gotten with her.)

“At the beginning of the school year”, she slowly begins, adjusting her pose ; they’re sitting side to side on her bed, after their third date, waiting for the movie on her television to start, “did you dislike me?”

Umi turns her head and now she does frown, but it seems like she is rather confused than offended.

“Dislike you? Of course not, why are you asking?” She sounds genuinely curious, and Kotori gathers her courage.

“You would always turn your head when I looked at you”, she mumbles, a blush creeping onto her face as she’s speaking because this is pretty embarrassing, who is she lying to, “and before we were on that chemistry project, you pretty much avoided me all the time, so…” Kotori bites on her lips.

“Did you hate me?”

“Kotori…”

“Because, you know, I can handle it! I-“

“Kotori-“

“I’m honest, you can tell me everything, and-“

“Kotori.”

She shuts her mouth and Umi gives her a very awkward smile.

“Kotori Minami, the second I saw you I thought you were the prettiest person I’ve ever seen in my whole life.”

Umi’s voice is stable, but her red cheeks underline the honesty of her confession.

“Oh”, Kotori manages to say, and suddenly she feels very hot. “That’s very sweet from you.”

“Well, you are a very sweet girl.”

And suddenly, Kotori bursts out in laughter. “I really thought you hated me”, she quietly chuckles, snuggling closer to Umi.

“How could I”, Umi answers, wrapping her arm around Kotori’s shoulders and placing a kiss on her forehead.

“I’m so glad I met you, Umi Sonoda.”

Kotori pulls Umi closer for a kiss and her heart is bursting from happiness.

[lonelypond]

Soldier Game: Operation LA Smile, Ch. 4

NicoMaki, Love Live, 3.4K, 4/?

Summary: Early morning post party, pre airport encounters.

Morning After

Umi had fallen silent and was staring out the window at the Tokyo skyscape as the rising sun made the metallic towers sparkle; Kotori preferred her view, leaning forward on the sofa, her arm behind Umi, enchanted as Umi couldn’t keep back the cutest yawn, then shaking her night blue hair with a little laugh.

A staff member appeared suddenly, distracting Kotori.

“Minami-sensei?”

“Mmmm.” Kotori acknowledged the presence, but did not go so far as to offer charm.

“The chefs are preparing for breakfast so we thought you might enjoy some coffee and pastries.”

Kotori smiled. This wasn’t invasive, this was a gift to cap off a long night of conversation. “Yes, Umi-chan and I would appreciate that.”

Umi heard her name and turned away from Tokyo. “Kotori?”

“We are getting a breakfast treat.”

“Oh good. I can sleep on the plane, but I do have some last minute packing. Coffee will keep me awake for that.”

“Espressos, quad shots, lots of sugary things in mine,” Kotori giggled.

“”And your guest?”

“Caffe latte. And something on the healthier side.”

“What, no sweets, Umi?” Kotori pouted, ‘but they have the tastiest here.”

Umi’s smile was gentle, “I have already had the sweetest indulgence of tucking the night into dawn in the loveliest company. Coffee and something sturdier than a macaron would be preferred.”

“I will see to it.” Helpful staff bowed out.

“Thank you.” Umi stretched. “That was an indulgence. I have not told so many school stories in years.”

Kotori leaned in a little further, her fingers resting lightly on Umi’s shoulder, still impressed by the texture of the dress, but even more impressed by the feel of the muscle underneath. “I would have loved to see you in your blazer and uniform.” Kotori leaned back and closed her eyes, “I imagine you were so serious.”

Umi shrugged, “I still am. And now I have to get back to work.”

“This wasn’t work?” Kotori asked.

“No.” Umi shook her head. “It was too comfortable. I showed too much of my true self.”

Kotori’s hand covered Umi’s as they stared into different memories of Tokyo, “Thank you.”

###

Maki heard the noises. Kitchen noises. Adding to the headache twinges inside her sinuses and skull. Not her place, she didn’t have a roommate. Unless she’d…Maki bolted up, the white floral sheet falling away, her clothes from last night still on. She recognized the family pictures lined up neatly on the dresser. Eli’s place. Maki relaxed, which only made her head throb worse. But at least if Eli had taken her home, Maki had probably not done anything stupider than what she could remember. She really had to take tequila off her Self Dare list. That would be the adult thing to do.

She managed to stand and head for the kitchen. Eli was putting together breakfast from what looked like leftovers.

“Sorry if I woke you. Figured I might as well use what’s in the refrigerator. We’ll be in LA for a month.”

“Why are you up so early?”

“Yazawa needs to go somewhere and we’re officially on bodyguard duty.”

“Where the hell does she need to go this early?”

“I don’t ask, I just drive. I was supposed to stop by the office and meet Nozomi to double check all the arrangements but now...” Eli near pouted.

Maki winced. The sun was bright and Eli’s idea of flirting as bonding over paperwork was just nutso. “I’ll drive Nico. Just hand me the food.” Maki stretched out a hand.

“Are you all right to drive?”

“I sweated out all the tequila on the dance floor. Now I’m just a shell over throbbing pain. And I intend to be in a bad mood so someone who deserves it might as well suffer with me.”

Eli laughed, “What did Nico do to deserve you?”

Maki blushed, growled, and grabbed the plate, nearly running for Eli’s couch.

“Civilized people eat at tables.” Eli teased.

Maki had shoved enough food in her mouth to prevent conversation and just pointed to her chipmunk cheeks with the fork.

“You have to pick Nico up in 40 minutes. She’s at the hotel.”

Maki froze. Nico was at the hotel. Still. In the FeatherSmile suite. With…? Images of Nico leaning over to kiss her signature over and over again, on lacy black, pink, blue, brown, gold, and sheer bras, on giggling women with no shirts and no shame, each offering Nico a lingering view, inviting more attention, shoved into the back of Maki’s eyes with more force than the hangover.

“Maki? Change your mind?”

Maki swallowed and shook her head, “No, I’ll do it.

“Thanks. US Customs twists everything up in petty. Plus, one office doesn’t know what another is doing. Nozomi sounded so frustrated about it.”

Maki frowned, “Are FeatherSmile handling their own baggage? Have they been complaining.”

“Yes.” Eli answered slowly, “And no. Maybe they know tricks. They’ve done trunk shows all over North and South America.”

“It’s an odd business setup.”

Eli considered, “Not really. They’ve been trying to break into the big fashion events, Milan, London, Toronto, New York, Miami...and even if their events were virtual only, they insisted on using local locations and vendors. Very detailed planning to support a solid strategy.”

“They’re thinking bigger than Tokyo.”

“World domination.” Eli chuckled, “I suppose you were asleep on a sofa when Nico gave her Number One Designer In the Universe toast. She’s bold.”

“Yeah.” Maki muttered, too wired to filter memories that proved Eli’s statement. Then the practical part of her brain kicked in. Nico had seen her last night, in these clothes. “I have to borrow clothes.”

Eli shook her head, “You know where my closet is. And remember,” Eli glanced at her swellegant vintage watch, “You have to be there in 37 minutes. So pick your outfit faster than…”

“Shut up, Eli.” Maki growled and headed into Eli’s bedroom. Pants and a shirt should work. Maki should just keep a change of clothes here. She crashed on the couch often enough. Umi’s morning routine, which began at dawn, was designed to deter lingerers.

###

Loose light blue linen shirt, navy pants, braided belt, Maki kept her own shoes, Eli had driven her car so Maki had an embroidered bomber jacket tossed in the trunk. Sliding it on was like sliding into armor. Whatever Yazawa had to throw in her direction, charm, orgy partners, anger, Maki would just let it slide off the nylon shoulders, to be eaten by the tiger snarling on the back.

Eli had Nico’s number so Maki texted her when she arrived at the hotel. Sooner than seemingly possible, the door opened. Nico. In a trench coat, mask, and sunglasses.

“You’re not my ride.”

“You look ridiculous.”

“Nico managed to get through the lobby without signing lingerie so discreet is the adjective you want to use. And why is it you? Can’t stand to be away from Nico?” Nico slid into the seat, blowing a kiss as she buckled in and Maki scowled. Nico pointed up. “Can’t you afford a roof?.”

“It’s a classic Porsche.” Maki hissed.

“It’s a disaster for Nico’s hair.”

Maki ignored that, “Where do you need to go?”

Nico mentioned a street Maki didn’t recognize. Maki started to type it into her phone’s mapping app.

“Nico will tell you. The turns are quick.”

“Is it your apartment?”

“My mom’s. I’m making my siblings breakfast.”

Surprised by the answer, Maki forgot to engage the clutch. She winced at the chattering noise; Nico giggled.

Maki snapped, “Do you have the time? This is important.”

Nico’s voice chilled, “Nico will be out of the country or quarantining for at least two months. I’m making my siblings breakfast before I go. The sooner you start the car, the more time Nico gets to spend with them.”

Maki’s cheeks flushed as she merged with traffic. “Which way?”

“Take a left. How fast does this thing go?”

Maki grinned. That was a question she would enjoy answering,

###

“Just park the car and come up for breakfast. You haven’t eaten, have you?”

“Not much.”

“Nico’s making pancakes. It’ll be amazing. Mama keeps a spot for Nico’s car so you can take it.”

“I’ll be intruding.”

“If you stay in your roofless car Nico will feel guilty. Plus,” Nico leaned over, staring intensely at Maki’s face, “You look hungover.”

“I do not.” Maki snapped.

“Nico knows what hungover looks like and last night, it was too much tequila on the dance floor.”

Maki flared red. “Were you watching me?”

“Everyone was watching you. Tokyo was watching you.”

Maki wondered if that meant binoculars or something. Nico’s continuing grumble explained, “Half the crowd was livestreaming you, the other half was undressing you in their heads. If we were actually dating Nico would shut down the party and throw them all out…”

Maki couldn’t help what she said next or the meek squeak that accompanied it, “Not me?”

“Nico would have thrown you off the roof. That kind of stupid, useless behavior as a mad attention grab…”

“What about having women strip right in front of everyone as a mad attention grab.”

“Nico is a professional, a lingerie artist. There are expectations, it is art.”

“It’s bull. You just like seeing…”

“Sexy women?” Nico snorted, “Yes, I do. I also like touching them, and I do it very well, if you remember just two days ago when you couldn’t resist Nico’s…”

Suddenly desperate to change the subject, Maki blurted. “I’m parking here right?”

Nico shook her head, Maki thought she might be angry, but her voice was as vapidly bright as ever, “Perfect, Ms. Perfect Ass.”

Maki slammed the door so she could pretend not to have heard.

###

“Hey Eli! Good morning! We got donuts in the office.” Nozomi’s cheerful assistant with unspecified duties waved as Eli turned down the corridor leading to Nozomi’s office. She was glad she’d taken the time to eat a quick, substantial breakfast. Sugar crash was no way to start out a day that would involve a transoceanic flight.

“Thanks, Rin. I already ate.” Eli paused to adjust her rolling luggage as Rin disappeared into the office.

“Eli’s here.”

“Right on time.” Eli heard approval in Nozomi’s voice.

“Of course.” Eli entered the office, closing the door behind her, “Punctuality is the cornerstone of professionalism.

Nozomi raised an eyebrow. She was once again dressed in a dark, formal business suit, the multicolored pattern scattered over her collarless blouse the only hint of personality. “So how’s your go go dancer colleague today?”

Eli paused, taken aback, “Maki?”

Nozomi nodded. Eli couldn’t help it. Nozomi’s implied criticism shocked the friendly out of Eli’s reply. “She’s fine. She and Nico should be wherever Nico needed to be by now.” Eli left her luggage standing by the door, “What is it you needed from me?”

“You said you might be able to help me figure out the paperwork we need for customs.”

Rin didn’t hide her boredom, “I’m gonna load up our ride, Nozomi.”

“Good idea, Rin.” Nozomi was glancing at two open folders, then decided to push one in Eli’s direction, “Take a look at this. Highlight everywhere someone has to initial.”

Eli leaned forward to grab a pen, “Will do.”

Nozomi smiled, “Thank you. Paperwork wasn’t listed as one of your talents.”

Eli winked, “Always keep a few secrets.”

Nozomi nodded back. That’s what she was afraid of.

###

“Nico!!!!!” Nico heard her sister, Cocoa, whining from the living room. But Nico was at the delicate part of the making of pancakes, whisking them full of fluffy and delicious airiness.

“Nico’s busy.”

“Your friend’s cheating.”

“MAKI!”

Nico’s other sister, Cocoro, appeared in the doorway, “I don’t think Maki’s cheating. She just seems to be really good at MarioKart. She hasn’t lost a race yet.”

“Get Cocoa to play another game, one of the party ones where random things happen.”

“Your friend won’t play anything else.”

“Tell her Nico says you get to choose.”

Cocoro nodded and returned to the couch, where Maki was fighting off a last minute surge by Nico’s teenage brother, Cotarou.

“Ha!” Maki raised the controller in a triumphant gesture, “I RULE.”

“Cheater…” Cocoa muttered.

Cocoro stood in front of Maki, who was still getting used to so many people in the same room who looked like Nico, were all younger than her, and all at least slightly taller than Nico. It made her think maybe some tequila was still lingering in her system, in the veins that made her forehead throb slightly if she paused to think about it at all.

“Nico says I get to pick the next game. And I want to play Dance Party.”

Maki sighed and handed over her controller, “I’m taking a break.”

“Rematch.” Cotarou demanded.

“You got it, buddy.” Maki whirled with finger guns and a wink, turning back to hide the wince that came with the spin of disorientation.

“Cool.”

Maki headed Nicoward, drawn partly by the smell of a cinnamony breakfast. She was starting to feel ravenous. Had she eaten anything at the party.

“Did I eat anything at the party?”

Nico turned, tilting her head quizzically, “Nico might have been too busy to monitor your calorie intake.”

Maki sat at the table, “I don’t remember eating much.”

“Did wherever you woke up feed you breakfast?”

“Eli’s spare futon and some kind of leftovers.”

Nico couldn’t get grumpy about a coworker’s spare futon. “Nico’s pancakes require appreciation. This is not an eat and run.”

“Smells good.”

Nico stopped and stared. Maki was sitting at the table, oxford sleeves rolled up, too many buttons undone for a breakfast with Nico’s siblings, long, delicate fingers sorting out tussles in red locks as Maki stretched her head back and carried on a conversation like they had some kind of a normal relationship.

“Had to borrow Eli’s clothes.” Maki frowned, unrolling a sleeve, “they don’t fit.”

“Not designer huh?”

“Oh, no, they’re designer, they’re just tailored for Eli.”

“DIdn’t seem like much difference to me,” Nico decided to test the mood, “Nico hasn’t had a chance to measure your partner yet.”

“Shirt’s too loose.” Maki grumped, pulling on the placket. Apparently there was no mood. Just breakfast. Nico sighed.

“Here. Eat your pancakes.” Nico dropped a plate in front of Maki.

Instead of instantly wolfing them down like Nico expected, Maki shuffled them around with her fork, crumb clumping the syrup Nico had so evenly poured.

“Is something wrong?”

Amethyst eyes examined Nico, and with a pout, Maki decided on a teasing tone, “Your cooking’s not the only thing I’d like to …”

Oh my god. Nico almost swatted Maki with the spatula. “My siblings are in the next room. What is wrong with you?”.

A huge blush flared all over Maki’s face and most of her chest, which the unbuttoned looseness of Eli’s shirt allowed Nico a nearly full view of.

And then Nico smelled the burning. She hadn’t factored bizzaro conversation with crazy sexy really bad at flirty but so so hot...burning hot...burning...Nico jumped as Maki said, “You should flip those.”

“I should flip you.” Nico muttered.

“What?”

Nico scraped the pancakes off the grill. Total loss.

“These are great, Nico.” said the only person in the house with food.

“Of course they are.” Nico kept her voice even, “Now leave Nico alone so no one starves.”

“Okay.” Maki actually sounded contrite so Nico sneaked a peek. Maki was looking glumly at her pancakes.”

“What is it now?”

“You came to cook breakfast for your siblings, not me.”

“Just eat the pancakes, Maki. Nico owes you breakfast. Everyone will get their pancakes. Cute guests always come first.” Nico groaned at her own phrasing, but Maki didn’t react to the subtext, she just bit into her breakfast with another, shyer, blush. Adorable. Nico knew she shouldn’t be enjoying this. Because Nico was on the job. No distractions allowed. A swimsuit shoot with...Nico shook her head, knocking out memories of panting, moaning, fingers sliding down soft, sleek skin, solid, sexy muscles alert to every touch. Nico sighed, barely stopping herself from slamming her head forward, which would have been into the grill. This was going to kill her, wasn’t it?

“Are you all right?” Maki sounded sweet. Like syrup.

Nico straightened up, shaking her head slowly, “Nico’s just dandy. If you keep eating and stop talking, we might get everyone fed.”

“Okay.” Maki grinned, “Then I’m going to win again.”

“Ha! Didn’t anybody tell you Nico is the reigning champ.”

“You’re going down.” Maki continued to calmly, obviously eat pancakes while Nico screamed inside her head, so many pictures rushing across her innervision.

“Pancakes.” Cotarou demanded from the doorway.

Nico said a prayer of thanks to the gods for teenage appetites and waved a spatula at her brother, “Sit next to Maki. Nico’s almost done with this batch.”

“You play pretty well. Is that your favorite game?” Maki asked.

Cotarou shook his head.

“What is?”

“Golf.”

“Oh, I love golf.”

“It’s very silly golf.” Nico relaxed now that the conversation had been diverted, “Full of weird things for golf haters.”

“Sounds like I might like it.” Maki chuckled.

Nico smiled as Cotarou did.

###

Kotori’s calm place was Marie Kondo style laundry folding while a charming samurai of a more ancient vintage than currently available napped soundly on her hotel suite’s couch. Umi didn’t snore, her breaths slow and even, the blanket Kotori had covered her with not moving even a centimeter. Sonoda Umi was as solid as a granite stone in a rushing river and with so many unknowns on this trip, Kotori found that a comfort. Plus, there would be Umi in a swimsuit, eventually, showcasing those muscular curves. Kotori couldn’t wait to get to the fabric draping part of design work once they got to LA. As rapidly as Kotori wanted to dress Umi, she had learned Umi’s pace to anything personal would be more measured. But Kotori would be content to stare at the dreamfuel profile, framed by glossy hair, for as long as Umi needed.

###

Maki felt more awake. Great (not that she’d tell Nico) food, fun with Nico and Nico siblings, laughter...she stretched out her arms. Next would be the drive to the airport. That would only make this mood better. And then she felt the hand on her waist, spinning her, Yazawa Nico staring up with what might be a lethal intensity if Maki hadn’t just casually bumped hips with her on the way out the door in a comradely fashion.

“Are you doing this on purpose?” Nico pulled Maki close while pushing them both forward, Maki feeling the car against her back, suddenly breathless.

“What?” Squeaked out.

“EVERYTHING!” Nico flicked the placket of Maki’s shirt, undoing another button. “Buttons flirting being great with my siblings biting your lip fingers hair breathing…”

Nico ran out of words at Maki’s wide eyed look of...surprise, it really was surprise wasn’t it? Damn. This was new level of want, a new surge of must have, must hear, must share this sensation...and suddenly Nico had Maki against the car, lips working up her throat, needing to feel the moan that was about to slip out of Maki’s perfect lips. Nico knew this was crazy, a hormonal teenage level of crazy, in her mama’s garage, with her siblings upstairs, but then Maki dug her fingers in Nico’s back and the only word Nico could think of was the only thing she always wanted to do with Maki.

###

Maki felt the movement and sat up, an oversized coat falling off her torso, her shirt unbuttoned. She hadn’t been wearing a bra. Nico had taken instant advantage of that. And...

“Better cover up.” Nico raised the coat up to Maki’s neck. “We’re almost there.”

“Who said you could drive?”

Nico snorted, “You said yes to everything else.”

“This is my car. It requires handling.”

Nico stared at Maki, oblivious to traffic for a moment, “Did you seriously just say that? To Nico?”

Maki looked away.

“Maybe stay awake next time, Princess. Or be less distracting. Nico has a plane to catch.”

“You’re a nightmare.” Maki wrapped her arms around her torso, too embarrassed to temper her tone.

“That’s not what she...wait...you said…” Nico did a drum roll on the steering wheel.

“Just shut up.” Maki glared out the window at all of Tokyo, missing Nico’s wink.

Nico just laughed as she expertly shifted gears. Maki pulled sunglasses out of her glove compartment. They were staying on until this mission was over.

A/N: Hi. Had a request for another chapter of this, so here we are.

[ryqoshay]

How to Handle a Nico - Even Under a Love Curse, There’s No Way I Would Be Like This

Primary Pairing: NicoMaki Words: ~1.5k Rating: T Time Frame: Maki is in med school. Nico is working as an idol producer. They are living together as a couple, but not married yet. Story Arc: Stand Alone

Author’s Note: I must thank VNVdarkangel for help in giving a title to this chapter; I was honestly stumped. But this title gives it un certain anime’esque je ne sais quoi, if you will.

“Manga?” Maki asked, glancing over at the tablet her girlfriend was holding. “Haven’t seen you read that kind of stuff in a while.”

“Doujin.” Nico corrected, swiping to advance the page.

“Same difference?”

“In art style, sure, but not in publication.”

“Hrm… Hey, that girl looks like… me?”

Nico giggled.

“And why is she… What the heck?”

Nico laughed heartily.

“I don’t get it.”

“It’s my doujin, Maki-chan.”

“You drew a doujin?”

“Well, no, I actually commissioned it.” Nico amended. “And this is really just a proof of concept, not her finished product.”

“Her?”

“The artist I commissioned. She’s a former school idol, which is how I came across her work.” Nico explained. “One of her friends from that group works with Egao now.”

“Hrm…”

“She’s been drawing her own doujin for a little while now but hit a snag and decided to take a small hiatus. During that time, she opened commissions and I liked her work, so I got one. Uhm…” She scrolled through a folder. “Here it is.”

“You had her draw us from one of our old photoshoots?”

“Uh huh. Cute, isn’t it?” Nico grinned. “Brings back memories.”

“Yeah…” Maki studied the drawing on display. “I remember liking that set.”

“Anyway, the picture gave me some ideas, so I reached out to her again and asked if she’d be willing to work a bigger project.” Nico switched back to the doujin. “And this is what we came up with. Wanna read it?”

“Sure.” Maki accepted the tablet. It felt odd reading a story about a fanciful version of herself, but the artwork immediately pulled her in. “What the heck? ‘How to Handle a Maki’? I don’t get it. What kind of title is that?”

“A fitting one. Nico is left trying to figure out how to deal with Maki’s curse, after all.”

“Curse?”

“Sorry, spoilers…” Nico held up her hands apologetically.

Maki pursed her lips. For some reason, the name bugged her more than it probably should. Perhaps it was because it sounded familiar? But why would it be familiar? Odd…

“And Nozomi is in this too?” She asked after a few pages.

“Yup.” Nico confirmed. “And Eli. And Kotori. Umi, Rin and Hanayo have only been mentioned in name thus far, but they’ll probably appear later. I forget what her girlfriend had planned for Honoka.”

“Girlfriend?”

“The artist’s girlfriend is really into fantasy games and whatnot. She’s been a big help in coming up with ideas for worldbuilding, character design and plot points. There are a couple Easter egg jokes and references to gaming that were her suggestions.”

“I see.” Maki continued to read. “Wait, do I still think you’re younger than me?”

“Maybe?” Nico shrugged. “Not really sure how to take care of that just yet. Maybe it can just happen off panel at some point.”

“And one meal is all it took for me to become obsessed with your cooking?”

“Are you gonna deny that’s what happened in real life?”

Maki deadpanned at her girlfriend, earning a laugh.

“Well, maybe not just one…” The redhead tried to save face.

“Then definitely by the second.” The raven-haired girl decided.

“… Maybe…” Maki conceded.

“Nico knows how much Maki-chan loves her cooking.”

Well, there really was no denying that fact.

“Did they have coffee in medieval times?” Maki inquired a moment later.

“No idea.” Nico admitted. “But I know Maki-chan can’t face the day without it, I figured just alluding to it without naming it might work.”

“I suppose…” Maki furrowed her brow. “Are you trying to scam or cheat me?”

Nico blinked in confusion until she saw the page. “Nico is a professional saleswoman!” She huffed. “She would never cheat a customer. She knows Maki-chan can afford better gear than your average novice adventurer and she knows what upgrades will be most beneficial.”

“Also, what’s a grue?”

“An excuse to force players to bring light sources, I guess.” Nico shrugged. “That’s one of those gamer jokes I mentioned.”

“And the gazebo?”

“Another joke.”

“I see. And why does Kotori have a lion?”

“She’s a Beastmaster.”

“Ok, but again, why a lion?”

“Because she had one in the original photoshoot.”

“Oh yeah, that’s right, she did.” Maki’s memory was jogged a bit. “She was part of the focus pair, with Eli, right?”

Nico nodded. “And you were paired with Rin as the secondary.”

“Is that why I’m friends with her here?”

“Rin? Not really, I don’t think.” Nico shook her head. “I mean, yeah, you two are friends, but through Hanayo. I think they’ll appear in the next chapter and we’ll get to explore how you know each other better.”

Maki nodded and continued to read. “Say, why don’t you call the harpy what it is?”

“Because you don’t know what it is.”

“Yes, I do.” Maki furrowed her brow.

“I mean your character doesn’t”

“Why wouldn’t my fantasy character know what a harpy is when she lives in a fantasy world where they actually exist?”

“Because she was raised in the city and is only now becoming an adventurer.” Nico explained. “She’s not ignorant, she just knows stuff better suited for an urban life as opposed to someone out in the rural areas. Not much different than real life, right?”

“I suppose…” Maki reached the part she had seen earlier and frowned. Her girlfriend noticed and giggled. But upon seeing the next page, she sighed. “Ok, the glomping was one thing, but climbing into bed with you? After having barely known you a day?”

“Two days, I believe.” Nico pointed out, ignoring the deadpan stare directed at her. “And it’s because of the curse.”

“Yeah, but even under a love curse, there’s no way I would be like this.”

Nico smirked.

“What?”

“I should really record you drunk sometime.”

“I still…”

“Oh, c’mon, Maki-chan, I’ve even told you about your drunken clinginess before.”

“Mmm…”

“And your half-asleep clinginess.”

“…”

“And your…”

“Alright, alright, I get it…” Maki didn’t want to admit the memories that were swirling around in her head.

“I’ve always found it cute, by the way.” Nico pointed out.

“You’re not finding it cute here.”

Nico chuckled. “That’s because it isn’t real, it’s because you’re under an idol curse.”

“You mean a love curse.”

“An idol curse.”

Maki rolled her eyes. “Are you intentionally baiting me into making a snarky comment about idols?”

“Maybe.” Nico stuck out her tongue.

Maki sighed. “And let me guess, you’re going to have me be all embarrassed about it later.”

“Well that’s how Maki-chan is in real life. And a flustered Maki-chan is an adorable Maki-chan.”

As if on cue, Maki could feel heat in her cheeks. She really should be used to Nico’s teasing by now, but the older girl rarely failed to get a reaction out of her. And though she wasn’t fond of how predictable her reactions were, she couldn’t really fault Nico for seeking them. After all, Maki also loved Nico’s own flustered expressions.

“So,” Nico asked as the last page was reached “what did you think?”

“It was entertaining.” Maki admitted. “Was this posted online?”

“Not yet.” Nico shook her head. “She just sent this to me for approval. She hasn’t even posted it on her own site yet.”

“Hrm…”

Nico chuckled. “Don’t worry, anyone at the hospital who reads this kind of stuff will like it and won’t think you’re weird or anything.”

It never ceased to amaze Maki how well her girlfriend could read her.

“But we can keep it private if we want.” Nico added.

“No, it’s fine, I guess…” Maki decided. “And you said there was going to be another chapter?”

“Or Two. Or more. Depends on how many ideas we have.” Nico grinned. “Because you know we can’t leave things like this. We can’t let Maki-chan only love Nico because of a curse! It needs to be natural! Just like in real life.” She leaned over to nuzzle into her girlfriend’s side. “Although even if we’re trying to keep things realistic, we also can’t keep the readers waiting for years…”

Maki furrowed her brow as she realized what Nico meant. “I didn’t mean…”

“I know. I know” Nico interrupted, making dismissive motions with her free hand. “Maki-chan’s just a little romantically dense is all. And we figured things out eventually and got together and we’re all good now.” She turned her head and pushed herself up so she could plant a kiss on the redhead’s cheek.

“Uhm… You know it’s getting kind of late…” Maki said softly.

“Hmm?”

“Well, I have class in the morning and…”

Nico grinned. “Is Maki-chan hinting that she wants to climb into bed with Nico?”

“Maybe…”

Nico laughed. “Maki-chan is being unusually shy tonight. She has no trouble seducing Nico but is embarrassed to request a snuggle session?”

Maki pouted, earning more laughter.

“So, to bed it is.” Nico said, pushing herself up and off the couch. “But how about a bath first?” She turned to offer a hand to her girlfriend.

“Alright.” Maki agreed, accepting the help up before following Nico down the hall.

Author’s Notes Continued in Followup Post

[oumiyuki]

The Daily Life of Loving a Really Cute but Dense Vampire Ch20

Chapter 20 – Tag, you’re it!

Author Notes

Yay for updates! –banzai- XD

May you all enjoy~ :D

Ayase Eli is a very busy person. Class president duties, student council meetings, personal project of wanting to keep the school district safe which includes patrolling, and taking care of her younger sister – these were just the few things that Eli has to do.

Today, the hardworking class president would have partaken in one of the above-mentioned activities after school, if not for being called upon for something leisure.

“Eli-chan~!” The unmistakable energetic call from her classmate sounded behind her so she stopped and turned.

“Hoshizora-san, is something the matter?” The quarter-Russian asked with a gentle smile.

“Rin. Call me Rin!” The orange haired girl requested with a broad smile. “And Kayo-chin is…”

“H-Hanayo…” The soft-spoken brunette requested to be addressed by her given name too, though in a very shy and soft voice.

Eli smiles a bit more than earlier, it’s quite an endearing sight to see Hanayo doing her hardest to step out of her comfort zone. “Rin, Hanayo. How can I help you?”

Rin shook her head. “Not help, nya. Let’s walk home together! Rin wants to hang out with Eli-chan more!”

“I-” Eli was going to kindly decline but was stopped when she noticed the shyer of the two nervously but excitedly voicing up.

“I-I too…Would like to…spend more time with Eli-chan… I-If you don’t mind!” Hanayo stuttered but her genuine smile shone through.

Eli sighs a little. “I guess it can’t be helped. Let’s go home together.”

“Yay, nya!” Rin pumped both hands into the air while Hanayo’s smile widened and nodded.

Shortly after leaving the school, Rin breaks the silence with an uncharacteristic sigh.

“What’s wrong, Rin-chan?” Hanayo faced her best friend with a look full of concern; it is extraordinarily rare to hear her brimming with positivity childhood friend sigh after all. Eli too, turned to listen.

Rin pouts a little. “I’m sorry…It’s not that Rin wants to worry you, but…”

“You can tell me anything, Rin-chan.” Hanayo placed a hand on the shorter girl’s shoulder encouragingly.

“It’s just that…Rin wishes to see Bat-chan again. But since Rin isn’t allowed to make a Welcome-Bat banner, Rin doesn’t know when Bat-chan will come again.” Sad yellow eyes stared into surprised and worried purple.

“Well…” Hanayo wasn’t sure where to start; should she comfort her friend and say that the bat will visit her again, or should she try to dissuade Rin from wanting to meet the bat again.

Eli clears her throat, gaining the attention of both Rin and Hanayo. “I think we should heed Yaza- um, Nico’s advice, and not mingle too much with…dangerous creatures.”

“But Bat-chan isn’t dangerous…” Rin pouts at Eli. “And you’ll know if you meet it! Alright, Rin got it!” Rin bounced and in an instant, the gloomy clouds above her disappeared as she smiles widely. “Eli-chan and Kayo-chin should come over and play at my house, so that when Bat-chan visits, we can all play together! And you will be able to see how nice and funny Bat-chan is!”

“What!?” Eli accidentally exclaims loudly as she imagined herself being near a bat, though this outburst was overlooked as Hanayo herself seemed to be shaking in fear while Rin skipped in front.

“Rin can’t wait for us to meet and play with Bat-chan, nya!” Rin laughs, ignoring any other protests Eli and Hanayo tries to come up with; plus her blonde and brunette friends can’t protest for long when they look at Rin’s childish excitement and innocent smile.

 Once the classroom for 1-3 was emptied out, Nico re-entered to see Umi still at her seat, though her bag was already packed.

“Well, let’s-”

“Someone is still around.” Umi speaks in a voice only audible to vampires which stops the now known to be a vampire black haired girl from saying anything careless when there’s another presence.

Yazawa-san is very careless or simply not sharp at all to have not noticed that someone else is still in this classroom.

The part of Nico that was slightly worried for what to come disappeared as she rolled her eyes at the “other presence”. “It’s fine. That’s just Nozomi.”

Toujou-san? Why would it be fine if Toujou-san heard us? Because she seems to have an interest in supernatural things and won’t think that we really are vampires? Or…

Umi raises a wary but curious eyebrow. “Toujou-san?”

“Ah~h~ Nicocchi~ Ya didn’t have to blow my cover so soon~” Nozomi crawls out from under her table to cross her arms and grin cheekily.

Why under the table?

Umi stopped herself from commenting, only because she could see a certain gingerhead childhood friend of hers doing the same; and it was a rather unexplainably cute action, though for the vice class president’s case – a very unexpected action.

Nico rolls her eyes again. “You wanted to know if Sonoda is a vampire and I found out, so you don’t get to hide yours.”

“I found out Yazawa-san’s identity.” Umi stated as she felt like she couldn’t let someone else think that it was due to her miss that her identity is known.

Yazawa-san, you shouldn’t be so prideful. That pride reminds me of Maki, but somehow different.

The purple haired vampire giggles. “Oh, I already know that Nicocchi was found out, and not the other way round~”

Nico huffed angrily where she stood, clearly unhappy that she let her identity spill, but it was for Maki so it wasn’t that bad.

Why does Toujou-san already know? Yazawa-san told her? Or was she watching… Toujou-san seems very perceptive after all.

Umi nods. “So…Toujou-san is one too.” The always careful archer made sure to not use the word ‘vampire’ in a public place where students or teachers may overhear.

Nozomi nods. “That I am. And you can address me as Nozomi. No need to be so formal, Umi-chan~ We’re friends after all.”

F-Friends… I mean, ahem, Toujou-san is- N-Nozomi is a vampire too…

The blue haired vampire pressed her lips together, not comfortable with breaking formalities so simply, but considering how the purplenette kept a gentle grin and is also known as quite the reliable vice class president… “N-Nozomi…”

“Yada-yada. And now we’re all friends. Yay. If business is done here, I’ll get going-” Nico cut in as she lost her patience from watching the stoic and stern archer act meek and embarrassed, especially since it’s because of the annoying spiritual vampire she has for a friend yet again.

Yazawa-san’s dismissal of my efforts to address Nozomi by her given name is making the situation extra embarrassing.

“Don’t be so cold, Nicocchi~ There’s a lot we can chat about now that we know each other’s secrets~” Nozomi grins even widely as she approaches the Class Idol to pat her.

“Hey! No touching the hair!” Nico smacked the mischievous vampire’s hand away with a frown.

But Nozomi seems to always quickly make a joke out of things and lighten the mood.

Umi caught the two’s attention with a short laugh, blushing, Umi quickly composes herself. “You two are really close.”

Nozomi nods happily, while Nico was taken aback by the comment. “Who is even close with this annoying woman?!”

This dishonesty is indeed familiar. Maki should learn not to be so dishonest. It’s a funny sight though.

The purplenette feigns a hurt look. “You’re always hurting me, Nicocchi~ But it’s okay, I know you’re just too shy to tell me you love me~”

“As if!” Nico turned away to hide her face; she obviously love Nozomi since Nozomi is one of her truest friends, but admit it, no way.

Yazawa-san and Nozomi are really close friends, that’s what I can see. I guess I can trust this two to not cause us any problems.

Nozomi sneaked a quick glance to see that their new friend was looking over and decided to keep up with the teasing. “Perhaps you don’t want to have Honoka misunderstanding your feelings~ I understand~”

“Wha- Nozo- I don’t!” Nico looked between the bluenette and purplenette with horror; Nico herself wasn’t even sure why she had to be so afraid or worried about what Umi thought of her. It’s not like she needed the green light from Umi to be dating Maki. ..Right?

Honoka? Why is Honoka brought up now? Plus… Yazawa-san has feelings for Honoka? And I thought it was for Maki. Wait, if it’s both… That cannot be forgiven!

“Yazawa-san…” Umi spoke up in a low, dangerous voice.

The class idol gulped, glared at her unashamed friend before putting up a strong front. “W-What is it?”

“I won’t allow you to hurt Honoka or Maki in any way-”

“I have zero intentions to hurt Honoka or Maki! Or anyone! Do I look like someone who hurt people?” Nico gestured wildly, trying to protect her name.

Yazawa-san doesn’t seem like someone who will hurt people…

“No…” Umi looked Nico up and down before replying.

Nozomi claps twice. “It’s true. Nicocchi won’t hurt anyone~ And Umi-chan~ You should address the class idol by ‘Nico’~”

Nico wasn’t sure if she should feel relieved or offended because Umi seemed to be implying that Nico’s size can’t hurt anyone, but relief she felt. “It’s fine. Sonoda doesn’t have to-”

“Honoka-chan would prefer if you address each other by your given names~” Nozomi said matter-of-factly while smiling broadly, amazed and proud of herself that Honoka can be her trump card.

… Bringing up Honoka now is unfair… But… Honoka will prefer that, just like Mi- Kotori’s case…

Umi clears her throat twice. “N-Nico…”

Nico grimaced a little before complying. “Umi.”

Nozomi usually wouldn’t but she felt extra delighted to have made another vampire friend today, plus Nico and Umi was too far apart for her liking, and thus she used her super speed to have the class idol and stoic archer in an embrace in the next second. “We’re all friends now~”

“Wha-!” Umi stuttered as she froze in Nozomi’s left arm, while the smaller of them three struggled to no avail at Nozomi’s right.

“Let go of me!” Nico’s protest was ignored as the purplenette chuckled; she can’t help but always be this happy when she makes a new friend and Umi was her kind of officially fifth friend she’s made.

Nico still struggles but gives a smile at Nozomi; Nico understands after all.

They really are close friends. I hope for a great relationship between all of us. But I guess that might have to wait until Honoka shows up…

 In a familiar and not so familiar street, a prone to getting lost gingerhead walks. After following a stray cat to and fro alleys, Honoka found herself where she was - wherever she was.

“Mm… Left or right?” Honoka tilts her head and body far off to the side as she wondered aloud what her next step should be.

Uwaa...How did I get so lost again? The orange tabby cat was really cute though~

Honoka chuckles at the memory of getting to pat the stray cat without getting scratched just before it left.

Oh. I hear familiar voices!

The carefree vampire skipped towards the voices she heard and appeared near a playground.

Ooh~ Oh.

Honoka marvelled at the playground which had swings, see-saws, slides and more before she noticed the current occupants.

“Ahh! The kids I met at the supermarket!” Honoka exclaims as approaches the children who all halt in their playing. “I didn't get your names… I'm Kousaka Honoka.”

To think I’d meet them again so soon!

The girl with the short brown hair recovered first and returned the wave. “Onee-chan! Do you have sweets for us to eat? Not that we're allowed to take from strangers…”

Sweets?

Cocoa pouts at the memory of her eldest sister reprimanding her about accepting sweets from people not acknowledged by said eldest sister.

“Sweets…” The youngest and the only boy around raised his hand which was holding onto a toy train.

I don’t have any strawberry jam bread with me now though.

The third girl, also the oldest of the three siblings present was still a little surprised to respond.

Honoka chuckles. “I don't have any sweets on me actually. Could I join in the fun?”

But I’d love to play! It’s been awhile since I played at a playground with other kids.

“Let's play tag then! Onee-chan is taller so you can surely run faster! Hopefully.” Cocoa jumped about in excitement; she have yet to know that Honoka is a vampire, so she was hoping that she can use a bit of her super speed against someone older.

Tag~

Honoka was a little starry eyed at the idea of running around for the pure reason of having fun.

“Cocoa. You should introduce yourself first. And I'm sure…” Cocoro trails off as she was unsure how she should address the gingerhead - first name? Family name? Onee-chan?

Cocoa waited for a minute but since her older sister did not pick up and finish her sentence, Cocoa spoke up again. “I'm Cocoa! Let's play tag Honoka!”

Cocoro panicked on behalf of her younger sister. “Aren’t you being too rude, Cocoa? At least add an honorific.”

Cocoa continued at her own pace to grab Honoka’s hand, but obliged. “Let's play, Honoka-nee!”

Honoka chuckles on the inside.

Cocoa-chan is really energetic~

Cotarou joined in by waving his toy in the air. “Honoka..nee…”

“Sounds fun! Cocoa-chan! Cotarou-kun!” Honoka smiled broadly, ever ready to play.

And Cotaro-kun is cute. I wonder if I was like that when I was much younger.

Cocoro watches with bemusement at how her younger siblings and the gingerhead seemed to be ready to play together as though they knew each other for some time now, instead of the supposedly strangers or acquaintances they should be. “I'm Cocoro… Honoka-onee-chan.”

And Cocoro-chan is so well-mannered and reserve. Kind of like Umi-chan.

Honoka directs her warm smile at Cocoro. “Let's play together, Cocoro-chan!”

“M-Mmph.” Cocoro could not help but smile widely as this was her first time playing with a vampire friend.

“Alright!” Cocoa cheers and did a happy jump and spin in the air. “Honoka-nee shall be the demon first!”

I guess that’s only fair since I’m the last to join!

Ever-ready to play Honoka, grins and accepts. “Okay~ I'll start counting, so you better start running! I won't go easy on you!”

Cocoa ushered Cotarou to start running before turning back to the grinning gingerhead. “Wouldn't want you to!”

Alright~ I’m gonna catch Cocoa-chan first!

Cocoro shakes her head as she knew full well that her younger sister is hoping for an exhilarating run and perhaps to use her super speed.

Honoka laughs and counts from ten to zero, all while keeping her eyes on her first target – Cocoa. “Ready or not! Here I come!”

The gingerhead chuckles as the three siblings each sounded their excitement and anticipation from where they were positioned; worried to be the one of target.

Now where should I turn first-

“You’re too slow, Honoka-nee!” Cocoa goaded from the other side of the playground with a large slide.

“I haven’t started running yet, Cocoa-chan!” Honoka picked up the pace and manoeuvred her way from under the playground to reach the little girl with the short brown hair but a ginormous smile.

“Wah! I won’t let you catch me so easily!” Cocoa declares as she ran the other way and around the see-saws.

Ha! I don’t have to run around the see-saws!

“You’re- Ehh?” Honoka jumped over the see-saw to tag Cocoa but somehow missed by a centimetre.

I missed? This is interesting!

Honoka kept the pace and ran a larger arc around the swings while Cocoa zig zagged across them, pulling at the ropes while she was at it so that the gingerhead could not follow.

“Is that all you got?” Honoka challenged as she reached out to tag Cocoa again after giving a good boost on her right feet for a leap towards the younger girl.

“No!” Cocoa shouts as the high schooler misses the elementary schooler by yet another centimetre. Cocoa turns and sticks her tongue out at Honoka before running faster away.

Cocoa-chan definitely had a “magical” speed boost earlier. Just like the first time…

Honoka’s smile threatened to reach her ears as she got excited at the instinct to use her natural abilities.

This time!

The gingerhead watched as the small brunette ran up the playground and was going to slide back to the bottom.

There’s no escape!

Honoka does a quick dash towards the playground, jumps forwards while changing into a bat midway so as to fly over the large slide and transform back into human form at the other side – with a magnificent backflip spin before landing on the ground right in front of Cocoa and tagging her on the shoulder.

“Tag! You’re it~” Honoka winks at Cocoa’s awe-struck expression.

That was fun! I haven’t moved at such a speed in a while, and to just fly as a bat and flip like that~ Ah, that was exciting!

“Wow…” The youngest around lifted both hands up into the air like a cheer after dropping his toy on the ground, his mouth opened in an ‘o’ showing how surprised he was too.

“Honoka-onee-chan-” Cocoro might have wanted to comment about not exposing the gingerhead’s identity in such a flashy and obvious manner, but Cocoa was louder.

“No way! No way! No way! Honoka-nee! You’re- You’re-!”

Honoka chuckles at the younger girl jumping and grabbing onto her hand. “That I am. Did I not tell you?” Honoka tilts her head to the side wondering.

“You didn’t! This is so cool! Cocoro-nee! Cotarou! Honoka-nee is-”

“I know. We know, Cocoa. Don’t say it out loud or Onee-sama will get angry.” Cocoro cut her younger sister off before the ‘v’ word could be spoken.

“But! This means we have a-”

“Amazing!” Cocoro shouted to drown out the ‘v’ word that Cocoa exclaimed.

“Friend!” Cocoa cheered.

I’m happy to have more vampire friends too, Cocoa-chan! We should play the ultimate tag!

“Let’s continue playing tag, Honoka-nee!” Cocoa suggested with so much enthusiasm that even someone who was not vampire would be able to guess that the tag Cocoa suggests isn’t the usual game.

“Let’s!” Honoka’s eyes was sparkling with excitement and Cocoro sighs at the back, quickly holding onto the two’s hand so that they don’t take off running.

“Onee-sama won’t approve of it.” Cocoro states while Honoka’s high tension lessens.

“Aww~ I guess not now then. We’ll play another time!” Cocoa wanted to protest, but seeing Honoka’s huge smile and genuine blue eyes, she nods her agreement.

“Promise!”

“Of course~” Honoka lifts her free hand to pink promise with Cocoa.

I should invite Umi-chan and Maki-chan to play too~

“See you again, Cocoa-chan, Cocoro-chan, Cotarou-kun! I had a whole lot of fun!” Honoka waves goodbye to her new friends and runs off, at a reasonable speed.

 Nico left after some time as she has to fetch her younger siblings from a playground close to the childcare which Nico permitted Cocoro to bring her two younger siblings to play.

“Bye-bye, Nicocchi~” Nozomi waves goodbye while Umi gives a small nod to acknowledge that Nico was leaving first.

I should tell Nicocchi to let her siblings play with all of us some time in the future~

“Well-”

“Do you have any questions, Umi-chan?” The vice class president decided to not beat around the bush this time.

The spirits seems to be telling me that Umi-chan suspects or knows something~

The bluenette raises both eyebrows at the straightforward question, contemplating for a few seconds before voicing her thoughts. “What do you know of Honoka?”

As expected. Umi-chan does thinks that I know that Honoka-chan is like us~

“Even though I’m being forward with you already~ Umi-chan is so cold~” Nozomi teases and Umi could not help but lower her head to hide a growing blush.

“I-It’s because… We should not speak certain words...” The usually composed vampire found it hard to not speak those forbidden words from time to time.

Umi-chan is the kind to be easily provoked too, huh~ This is going to be fun~

“I understand~”

“So?” Umi cleared her throat behind a hand as she tried to get them back on track.

“I know that she’s a sweet and energetic girl~”

“Nozomi.” Umi is a patient girl, at least she believes to be one of those people with very high patience, thanks to the annoyingly lazy and playful childhood friend she has; but it was after school now, and she had a rather long day, thus the lack of patience when it came to the mysterious vice class president’s teasing.

“Alright. I do know. But Nicocchi doesn’t.” Nozomi answers honestly. “Are you going to tell-”

Umi shakes her head. “I’m not going to be the one to blow Honoka’s cover… Though I am curious. Nico mentioned that you’re the one who wanted to know about me…what made you suspect?”

Nozomi giggles with a hand covering her mouth. “I won’t say that Honoka-chan didn’t play a part~”

Honoka-chan played a big part in this after all~

Umi sighs, obviously resigning to fate that the gingerhead had blame in her identity being suspected. “I must have been careless at some point too…”

“Hm~ But it was out of care for Honoka-chan~ So it wouldn’t really be counted as being careless I suppose~” Nozomi gives the sulking bluenette a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

“… Since you know, why is Nico in the dark and causing problems for Honoka?” Umi frowned at the memory of Nico’s stalker-ish and amateurish snooping.

Nozomi chuckles. “It’s more fun this way~”

Umi sighs yet again with a shake of her head. “Until when? And here I thought you wanted to make more friends.”

The purplenette grins. “Honoka-chan and I are already friends~ Of course, I do want to become even closer from this too~”

But considering how much more interesting it is to see Nicocchi try her hardest…I can’t help but wait and see~

“Hm.” Umi hummed her understanding to Nozomi’s situations. “As mentioned earlier, Maki is in the know, so I’ll let her know about you too.”

Maki-chan is amazing to have grew up with two vampire friends~

Nozomi nods. “I’ll greet and introduce myself once more tomorrow too~”

Umi wears a lopsided smile as she imagines Maki’s surprised and irritated expression from Nozomi’s sure to be playful introductions. “I’ll give her a heads up.”

Nozomi chuckles. “You say it like I’m going to do something bad~”

It’s just a little bit of teasing~

“Are you not?” Umi jests as the two left the classroom.

Author Notes

You know? I actually can’t wait for Nico to find out that Honoka is a vampire. So Honoka can play with Nico, Nozomi, Umi and Maki and Hanayo all together~ XD And it’ll be so fun~ *O*

Anyways~ I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter~ XD I especially enjoyed the parts with Honoka. –chuckles- XD

Leave me comments to tell me how you feel about the chapter! *w* And see you in the next one!

[ranransailor]

The fastest bike

2,304.

“We could’ve stayed there, you know?” Nico said, looking elsewhere. Honoka and Rin were too busy staring at the closed door to look at her. “I would’ve known what to do.” She muttered, placing her head over her hand, her elbow resting over her thigh.

“They thought us this at school, Nico-chan.” Honoka said, eyes still over the white door, her tone of voice sounding a little like a happy-go-lucky cheerful song. She was hitting her feet lightly against the ground, making the dry mud from her sneakers fall on it. “You find a wounded lost dog, you go to the vet to see if the dog’s okay. If the dog’s okay then you can keep him. I was thinking about naming him Motorbike—” Nico made a sound which interrupted Honoka. It was her ‘I’m mad’ or ‘I’m annoyed’ sound.

“What school do you even go to? The vet will come out and first thing he will want will be his pay for looking at the dog. I could’ve taken care of him there, you know? That they thought us at school.” Nico sounded kind of proud but Rin and Honoka doubted how real her statements were, though none of them were brave enough to contradict Nico. “Also, Motorbike is a lame name.” And Honoka didn’t know what to say first— say that she remembered that being thought at school clearly because it had been the day Umi fainted, say that of course she knew what school she went to since they went to the same one, say that they didn’t have any money so they were so really screwed if what Nico said was true or that Motorbike was a sick name.

“Uh…” Was all she could mutter, making Nico sigh. She extended her arm, palm facing up.

“C’mon. Honoka, Rin, give me your money.” She said. Honoka and Rin looked at each other and then dug into their pockets. Honoka had tons of candy paper trash and lint and Rin had an Argentinian peso she had found in the ground the other day. She even had the nerve to shyly put it on Nico’s palm. Nico closed her hand and then put the peso on her thumb. She then hit it with it and it started turning as it went up and then fell. Nico got it and placed her hand over it. She turned it and then took out her hand. It was tails, or so they supposed (due to their poor knowledge in Argentinian pesos). Nico looked at them and there was something eerie about the look in her eyes.

“You know what that means?” She asked, making her voice sound a tad deeper than usual. Rin and Honoka shook their heads. “It means you two are morons!” She closed her hand and made as if she was going to hit their heads against each other, but she didn’t (she could be mean to them and all but she would never harm them— it was the thing she wanted to do the least).

“Hey, we’re not morons!” Rin said. Honoka nodded. The door opened before Nico could scream something else. It was the vet. Long story short the dog needed to stay there and he thanked them for bringing him in— he said it saved his life. They exited the place after they heard all the reassuring words they needed to hear. Contrary to Nico’s belief the vet didn’t ask them for money; she didn’t know he was infamous because of his love for animals, which meant he’d cure the dog for free (and, after that, keep him for himself). It also wasn’t like the dog was theirs— they had found him by the bridge. Honoka made him promise he’d name him Motorbike. He did.

They started walking anywhere; it was three o’clock in the afternoon and they had a whole day ahead of them. Honoka had her hands inside her pockets and a dumb smile on her face. Rin was two or three steps before them kicking a rock. Nico was walking her bike, trying not to smile. She was happy the dog was going to be okay. She thought he would die on their ways to the vet.

“We didn’t pay.” Honoka said. Nico could hear the contained giggles in her voice.

“Yeah.” She said. “But we didn’t get to keep the dog, so what you said was a lie.” She added. She didn’t want the be the only one who was wrong (not like she was the only one that was wrong anyways).

“But we didn’t pay.” Honoka insisted. She looked smug and Nico looked ready to fight her when a sound like a bang interrupted whatever thing was going on between them. Rin had kicked the rock too hard and it had hit a garbage can and almost fell off. She looked at them and covered her mouth (as she always did when she screwed up) and started to walk beside them.

“So does it work?” Rin asked, pointing at Nico’s bike. She had gotten it two days before (the first day of vacation) and wouldn’t stop talking about it afterwards. She didn’t, though, talk about where she got it from nor ride it in front of her friends. Kotori said it was probably a present from her mom because she passed her finals. Maki assured Nico had found it in the dumpster and then gave it a few touches to pretend it was new and show off to them her new ‘stupid piece of trash’, as she said. Nico didn’t say anything, not even the slightest thing. She didn’t even lie like she did other times. She just kept silent, kept mysterious.

“Of course it does! I bet you three ice-creams it’s the fastest bike around here.” Nico said, and as three ice-creams was a lot Rin believed her and oohed.

“Even faster than Eli’s?” Honoka asked. Nico nodded.

“Of course it’s faster than Eli’s! Can’t you see that this bike could kick Eli’s bike’s ass in one second?” But they couldn’t see it. Saying the bike was old would have been almost a compliment. Honoka could recall seeing bikes like that when she was three years old or something, and they were called old-fashioned back then. It was rusty in some parts (not as many as you’d think, though) and both Rin and Honoka were pretty sure the reason Nico wouldn’t ride it was because one of the wheels (or both) were deflated and because the handlebar and saddle didn’t seem stable.

“When are you gonna ride it, then?” Rin asked. She didn’t have her bike as for that moment and was hoping that maybe Nico would let her ride with her because Hanayo’s parents wouldn’t let them ride double (it didn’t matter who was controlling the bike) after Hanayo broke her arm and Rin her nose four years ago doing so.

“Soon enough. Just gotta give it some details more and it’ll be ready to fly.” She said. She was griping the handlebar so hard her the palm of her hand was ghost-white. “Soon enough.”

The big day came three days later. They were now on top of one of the tallest hills near town, everyone sitting down aside Nico and Eli, who were about to have a competition.

“I don’t think I want to do this, Nico.” Eli said, looking at the angle in which the hill fell into ground. The road (which was one that lead into the town they lived in) was paved but it had been paved like thirty years ago or something and looked terrible in Eli’s eyes. It was surrounded by yellow knee-height grass until the town started— which meant more pavement. “It’s dangerous. I heard someone—” Nico interrupted her.

“I heard someone was scared my bike would be faster than hers.” She said. Eli looked at her and her face was so serious it was almost scary.

“I’m serious, Nico. It’s really dangerous. I heard someone broke their neck going down here on a dare. I don’t want to break my neck.” She touched her neck as if to make sure it was still in there and fine.

“Sounds like just excuses to me, Elichika, what can I say?” She had a big smile on her face and for a moment Eli thought she was going crazy. “Are you gonna chicken out or are you gonna do it?” She asked. Eli didn’t know what to do. She glared back at her friends. Everyone waiting for her answer. Their eyes were bright and Eli sighed. She was going to do it for them, and also for Nico (Eli felt like she had to do it especially for her, but it was too complicated for her to know exactly why).

“Let’s go.” She said. They both got on their bikes. Eli was starting to feel regretful when Kotori said go. She started pedaling. The wind was hitting her face ragingly as they both dove to what seemed to be their deaths. Why they never wore helmets, Eli wondered. They were necessary but none of them had ever owned one.

Her bike was going down so fast she felt like she was turning into an spaceship. She looked at her side. Nico was just next to her, frowning, eyes almost closed, standing on the pedals. Eli wanted to say something. No words came out of her mouth. They were just in half of the slope and Eli wanted to break bad— though she couldn’t do it. If she did so, she thought, things would end up worse. So she kept going faster and kept growing more and more afraid until she remembered nothing else.

What happened next is something Nozomi and Rin had to tell them. Long story short Nico lost control of her bike because she hadn’t fixed it correctly, she hit Eli and they were both sent flying to the grass in the less peaceful way possible. Eli had a huge cut on her right leg and her wrist was as good as useless. Nico’s arms were dotted in bruises and her nose had bleed for an eternity. She had cut her eyebrow and almost broke her knee (which looked straight out of a nightmare). Her lips were soared and huge, and the first thing she asked when she was conscious enough was ‘did I win?’. No one answered.

“Sorry.” Nico said as she ate her ice-cream. Her lips looked almost normal now. Eli licked hers without looking at her.

“Yeah.” She said. It was the first time they talked after the accident (which had been four days ago) and Nico had treated her an ice-cream. Eli knew her apology was honest because Nico first of all never treated anything to anyone and secondly she never said sorry even if she was wrong. She felt Nico sigh.

“I found it in the dumpster. I was so excited, you know? I had never had a bike before and just was… so proud, I guess. Fixed it with the help of mom and I guess we aren’t any good at fixing bikes.” She laughed a bit and sounded too sad. “I had found other bikes on the dumpster before —it’s not unusual to find some that look as good as new— but this one was different. It looked like my dad’s, you know? So I rushed home with it and wanted it to look exactly like his. Mom knew so too, even if I didn’t tell her. And when Honoka asked me if it was faster than yours, when I still had to fix half of it… I got too excited and greedy. I won’t lie to you, Eli. Your bike makes me jealous.” She laughed again, this time sounding more honest but not any less sad. Eli knew that with bike she meant something else.

“It’s alright.” Eli said. “Is the bike okay?” She asked. Nico nodded.

“Hanayo says her dad knows how to fix bikes. Said he’d do it for free. I said I don’t need no charity but she insisted and said it wasn’t charity because I am her friend and all of that. My comment got her kinda nervous. She looked cute. Yours?”

“It’s fine, I guess. Kinda dirty but aside from that it’s still rolling. Not like I can take it out now.” She showed Nico her wrist, which had a bandage going around it a few times. Nico giggled.

“Guess you’ll have to ride double with Nozomi then.” Nico said. Eli nodded.

“Yeah.” She said. No one liked to ride double with Nozomi (aside from Kotori) because she always joked around and pretended she was going to hit something or pretended she was going directly towards a dead end for fun. She never hit anything but it was an scary experience.

They stayed silent for a while. Summer was starting and they already had reached the limit of wounds they could get. She felt Nico fidget. They had finished their ice-creams.

“What I told you before,” Nico started. Eli knew what she wanted to say. “Don’t tell anyone about it. It wasn’t for you to feel pity for me and they weren’t excuses either— I just wanted to be honest with you for once, explain to you why I was acting like that. I don’t need you to feel pity for me or—” But Eli stopped her. She was chuckling.

“Pity? For you? You’ve got to be kidding. I could never feel pity for some as terrible as you.” She hit Nico lightly in the arm and Nico chuckled.

“Very funny. Guess you can’t get over my bike was faster than yours.” Nico said. Her eyes had a twinkle in them. Eli sighed.

“Yeah, I guess.” She smiled. “I guess.”

[dimensiontripperhibiki]

Start Dash (9/?)

Next chapter, hope you guys enjoy!

“You alright, kid?” Nico froze and looked up, having been softly sobbing into her knees. “Go away.” She said, unable to see the person through blurry eyes. Hisa sighed and looked toward the door. She was sure that was how she got to the stage but she couldn’t leave Nico alone when she was in such a state. “Yazawa, right? What happened? Did someone hurt you?” Nico let out a choke out laugh. “Not yet.” “What the hell are you wearing?” Hisa walked over to Nico and knelt down next to her. “Kaiyo couldn’t be here so I figured I would fill in. For Umi, you know?” Nico gritted her teeth hard.

Hisa noticed, frowning. “Is that what’s wrong? Did you two get into a fight?”

“I knew this would happen.” Nico said angrily, burying her head in her arms atop her knees again. “I knew this was a bad fucking idea. I’m such an idiot!” “Whoa, whoa. Calm down!” “How?!” Nico growled tearfully, looking up at Hisa. “She found her soulmate!” “Sometimes soulmates aren’t the ones you want, you know? Just chill.” Hisa placed a calming hand on Nico’s shoulder only to be angrily shrugged off. “I have a friend...Uni. She’s just...insanely in love with my other friend, Saya. Even if she found her soulmate there’s no way she’d want to be with anyone but Saya. She would choose her every time.” Nico stared at Hisa blankly. “So I’m Uni in this scenario? And Umi is Saya who found her Yuki in NOZOMI?!” “Crap, bad example. Bad example!” Hisa hit herself on the forehead with the heel of her hand. “Uh, I don’t like using this as an example but my sister and Izetta! Did you know my sister found her soulmate and turned them down because she loves Izetta?” Nico sniffled softly. “Does Izetta love her?” “Yes. They’re actually dating much to my annoyance as a big sister.” Hisa replied honestly. “Itsuki is seventeen and Izetta is twenty. Raven’s age.” “It doesn’t make a difference.” Nico said in despair. “You should have seen them in there, Umi looked like...like she was seeing everything for the first time. She said everything was brighter. And she couldn’t keep her eyes off…” Her voice cracked and she angrily slammed her fist onto the floor, tears forming in her eyes again. “Damn it. What the hell am I gonna do?” “Just relax for a…” “If you tell me to relax one more time, I swear I’ll punch you.” Nico growled furiously. “Just leave me alone.” “Yeah, not happening. And for the record, I was in the army, I can take a few punches.” Hisa sat down with her back against the wall next to Nico. “Just understand that when people see color for the first time it’s hard to adjust. Maybe she was in shock.” “SHE’S SEEN COLOR ALREADY!” “What?” “When I kissed her or held her hand or even just looked at her!” Nico said, her voice thick with emotion. That wouldn’t be happening again. Not for Umi. Hisa thought about that for a moment. “Well now it’s not going away, right? It’s hard to focus when everything is brighter and has more complications and elements. Besides she seems more worried about you.” She pointed past them to Umi who was standing alone near the door, looking around. “No, no, no...don’t let her see me. I can’t let her think that I…” “What? That you care?” Hisa cupped her hand in front of her mouth. “UMI!” “HISA!” Nico growled angrily as the redhead stood up. “Why the hell would you do that?!” “It’s for your own good. Well I have to head in there.” Hisa headed for the door as Umi ran toward the two of them. “Don’t say anything.” Nico bowed her head as Umi reached her. Umi noticed tears on Nico’s cheeks and fell to her knees, pulling Nico into a hug. She felt Nico resist but refused to let go. Finally, Nico fell still. “Nico, I’m sorry…” “I know, alright?” Nico closed her eyes, trying to ignore the colors she’d be able to see. “It’s not your fault, I get it.” “I don’t want Anju.” Umi said, her voice slightly muffled. “I want you, I love YOU!” Nico froze in Umi’s arms. “You love me?” “Yes.” Umi murmured, reaching up to gently run her hand over Nico’s hair. “I love you, Nico. I don’t want to be with anyone else.” “But she’s your soulmate…” “Screw that!” Umi’s sharp tone and cursing shocked both Nico and Umi herself. “I mean...I don’t want that. I wish this had never happened. I don’t want to see color if I don’t get it from you. I love when you touch me and everything brightens. But that’s…” “Not going to work anymore.” Nico said softly, drawing away. She was surprised to see tears in Umi’s eyes too. “Why are you crying?” “Because my life never goes the way I want it to!” “Umi, I-I...damn it.” Nico averted her eyes. She wanted to say it but she couldn’t bring herself to. She took a deep breath. “I think...no, I know...I love you. But she’s your soulmate. You know how this works. You’ve seen it with your sister and Hisa. Kotori and Maki. Honoka and Eli. Nozomi and Saya.” “But she doesn’t get it. She’ll never understand me. Not like you.” Umi said with a hint of desperation. “I don’t want to give this up, Nico. It’s more important to me than anything else. I choose you. Please believe me! Don’t just run away because of this!” “What would you do if you were in my position?” Nico rasped, her throat sore from crying. “If my soulmate turned up? How would you feel?” “I would...be terrified because I don’t want to lose you.” Umi said honestly. “But I would fight to keep you because I know there’s nobody better for me than you. I will fight for you.” Nico wiped at her eyes, sniffling softly. She didn’t know what to say to Umi. She wanted to believe her but how could she when Umi had just met her soulmate? “Umi, I don’t…” Nico was cut off by the sound of the door to the right of them being thrown open. She looked up in time to catch Rin’s eyes. “Are you coming, nya?!” Rin exclaimed as she hurried over to them. “We have to go onstage in a minute. Nico-chan, are you crying?” “No.” Nico answered gruffly as she got to her feet. “I overheard Honoka-chan say that you met your soulmate, nya.” Rin said, turning to Umi, her brow furrowed in confusion. She noticed that Umi was watching Nico carefully. “What about…?” “Rin, don’t.” Umi warned softly, getting to her feet as Nico walked away. She grimaced as she watched Nico’s retreating back. “I don’t want that. I don’t want to be the soulmate of a rich, sheltered girl. Nico is my soulmate.” Rin tilted her head, still confused. “But if she was you would have seen colors when…” “Shut up, Rin.” Umi angrily pushed past Rin and hurried back into the building after Nico. “What did I say…?” ---- Miyu watched Hanayo closely, noticing the glow in the girl’s cheeks. She looked happy. Vibrant even. They had made their way back to Miyu’s house shortly after the performance. Thankfully Chrom had opted to go out with Raven, Akari and the others. They had tried to persuade Hanayo and Miyu to go too but Hanayo had politely declined. Miyu knew that Nozomi, Honoka, Rin and some of the other girls from Muse had chosen to go though. “You were amazing.” Miyu complimented honestly, leaning back into the couch. She had to admit, it was nice to have the house to themselves for a change. Hanayo smiled warmly at the compliment and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Thank you, Miyu-chan. I’m happy you liked the performance.” “That’s an understatement.” Miyu said with a soft chuckle. “Onii-san and the others loved it too. I heard them singing on the way back to the car…” She shook her head in dismay at the idea but she was relieved that Chrom and their friend group had accepted Hanayo so easily. Hanayo sat up slightly, removing her jacket. Miyu watched as it was slowly taken off. She was so busy watching that she didn’t notice when Hanayo moved toward her until she found herself on her back, Hanayo looming over her. Her eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected gesture. She swallowed thickly, able to feel Hanayo’s weight subtly pressing her down into the couch. “Hanayo? Wha…?” “I want my kiss.” Hanayo pouted down at Miyu. “You promised, remember?” Miyu relaxed, a smile tugging at her lips as she remembered telling Hanayo that she would want some alone time with her after the performance. She cleared her throat before she spoke, trying to imitate Hanayo’s sudden confidence. “So come and get it then.” Hanayo didn’t need to be asked twice. She leaned in and kissed Miyu deeply, one hand going to rest at the side of Miyu’s neck. Miyu’s arms wrapped around Hanayo’s back to tug her closer to her. The warmth of Hanayo’s body pressed against hers and the softness of Hanayo’s lips had her heard racing frantically as she leaned up to kiss back. Slowly, Hanayo eased back and the two shared a soft smile. “I like this new confident Hanayo.” Miyu said honestly, watching the way Hanayo’s purple eyes sparkled as she looked down at her. She reached up, brushing her fingers over Hanayo’s cheek only for Hanayo to turn and kiss her palm. “You haven’t seen anything yet.” Miyu blushed at the comment and let her hand trail down, gripping the front of Hanayo’s shirt. She tugged her back down to her, their lips brushing. “Maybe we could go back to the kissing?” Hanayo was momentarily distracted by the slight kiss before she remembered what she wanted to say. “Go on a date with me.” Miyu’s eyes widened. “Your fans will kill me.” “Let them get jealous.” Hanayo answered, unworried by the prospect. “You’re mine.” Miyu groaned at Hanayo’s grin and let her head fall back to the couch “Okay, what are you doing to me…?” “Letting out my wild side. What else?” Miyu pouted. “I want you to take me. Damn it. We haven’t known each other for long enough. Damn the rules when it comes to soulmates...compared to the married couple we barely even know each other.” “Rin-chan and Hibiki-chan?” Hanayo guessed. She saw Miyu answer with a nod. Miyu bit her lip, thinking for a moment. “What are your hobbies besides idol stuff?” “I like cooking...mostly rice.” Hanayo blushed as Miyu snorted in amusement. “D-Don’t laugh! I also like tech stuff.” “Oh, so you’re a nerd?” “Well after Maki-chan I am the second smartest of the group.” Hanayo answered with a small smile. “I like coding.” “Can you hack?” “Y-Yes.” Miyu straightened up, her eyes wide. “Let’s hack Chrom’s computer!” “Why?” Hanayo looked puzzled. “I don’t know him very well but it seems like the only thing he’d have hidden on his computer are nerdy movies and study material.” Miyu visibly deflated. “Ugh, you’re not wrong. Maybe Hisa. She would have some interesting stuff on hers. Probably something really girly like wedding dresses for when she finally gets around to marrying Kaiyo-san.” “If you can find a way to get her laptop, I’ll hack it.” Miyu grinned at the comment. “You’re the best girlfriend in the world. Would you eve-” “I’m not going to hack Rin’s soulmate’s computer.” Miyu pouted. “I was going to say smartphone...but fine. I’ll get the laptop. Somehow.” Hanayo sighed. “I don’t usually tell people about that side of me. It just kind of happened because I liked messing around with my laptop. It’s when I stumbled upon coding tutorials that got me obsessed. Not as much as rice and idols but close…” Miyu grinned. “Your nerdy secret is safe with me.” Hanayo pouted before she tackled Miyu back down to the couch. ---- Umi glanced around the room she had been staying in for the past few days. Kaiyo and Hisa had gone to pick up her things from her parents’ house the previous so with her belongings in the room the place was beginning to feel more like home. She picked up her bag and was just about to walk toward her open bedroom door when her phone rang in her pocket. She took her phone out, finding the number to be one she didn’t recognize. She answered it anyway and put the phone to her ear. “Hello?” “Umi-san?” Anju’s voice sounded hesitant on the other end of the line. “It’s Anju. You remember, from A-Rise?” Umi blinked, almost dropping the phone. Her face turned red. “How could I forget?” She asked, confused by Anju’s introduction. “H-How did you get my number?” “Your friend gave it to me.” Anju answered quietly. “Kousaka-san? We didn’t get a chance to talk before you left last night. I’m sorry for getting you in trouble with your...girlfriend?” “W-What?!” Umi spluttered in surprise. “You mean Nico? She’s not...we’re not...together. It’s not like that. It’s just...I think you misunderstood.” “Oh...sorry.” Anju replied, seemingly surprised herself. “W-Would you care to get coffee with me this evening? I mean if you have practice or you’re busy, it’s…” “It’s fine.” Umi interrupted before Anju could finish speaking. She walked over to her bed, sitting down on the edge. “But I prefer tea.” “Me too, usually.” Anju said brightly. Umi heard a soft thump in the background and wondered if Anju was doing exactly what she was. “Is this what meeting your soulmate feels like...I feel like we should have known each other our whole lives.” Umi swallowed thickly. “Yeah.” She whispered. She couldn’t deny that she felt a connection to Anju. “Yeah. It seems like we have a lot in common.” “Do you want me to meet you at your school later?” Anju asked, her tone brightening once more. “No!” Umi exclaimed quickly to that, thinking of what Nico’s reaction would be. “I-I mean...you have fans at my school, you know? I’ll meet you at yours. I don’t have practice today so it’ll be fine.” “Neither do I.” Anju sighed. “Tsubasa’s called off practice. She says I should focus on my soulmate.” Umi grimaced. “She seems...fun.” “You have no idea.” “So I’ll…” Umi looked up at the sound of someone clearing their throat. Her eyes widened when she saw Hisa standing in the doorway. “Um...I’ll talk to you later, Anju. I have to leave for school. Bye!” “The soulmate, I assume?” Hisa drawled, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed in front of her chest. She watched as Umi blushed and looked away. “You know...when I met your sister for the first time it was like...opening my eyes for the first time. It was shocking. I wanted nothing but to spend time with her even though I barely knew her. It all happens so fast…” “What’s your point?” Umi grumbled, looking down at her phone in her hands. “Soulmates are usually chosen to us because we have something in common.” Hisa continued. “A trait we both share. Kaiyo and me both want to help people. Me physically and her mentally. I’m assuming Minami and her girlfriend both want to reach their goals and are determined to do it? And Saya and Nozomi both have this trait of...devotion.” “Honoka and Eli both share the ability to lead and the need to succeed.” Umi whispered without looking up. “And me and Anju…” “Both come from upper classes. And both want to break free from it.” Hisa finished knowingly. “Seems like...the opposite of your current girlfriend, right?” Umi looked up sharply. “So you’re saying I should just break up with her?” Hisa gave a short laugh and shrugged her shoulders. “If you want my advice I’d tell you to block that number and not go on your date. But it’s not my decision, it’s yours. And Kaiyo says I’m not meant to influence you too much. Besides, we both know you won’t do it.” Umi tightened her grip on the phone in her hand. “How do you know?” “Because I know. I wouldn’t have deleted Kaiyo’s after all.” Hisa took her weight off of the door, straightening up. “Get ready for school. You’re going to be late.” Umi closed her eyes, picturing two people. One with kind eyes and a taller build. The other with hard but kind eyes, a bit shorter than the other girl. Both waiting for her. Umi groaned and fell back onto the bed. “Damn it.” ---- Later that day “I lied about Nico.” Anju blinked as Umi sat down across from her. She had noticed that the second year had seemed preoccupied on their way to the cafe but she hadn’t said anything about it. “What?” “She is my girlfriend.” Umi said in a hushed, hurried tone of voice “And I’m in love with her. I don’t want this...any of this soulmate thing if it means I can’t be with her.” Anju’s eyes widened at the admission before she let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank the gods…” “Huh?” “I’m not ready to come out...or even consider being with a woman despite going both ways.” Anju explained, noticing Umi’s confusion. “I don’t even know if I do go both ways. Tsubasa just wouldn’t stop going on about this which is why I asked you out.” “So we agree?” Umi asked hopefully. She had expected Anju to be upset at the very least. “We’re not going to pursue this? Even if we are...soulmates?” Anju nodded her head in confirmation. “Do you think I’ll be able to...do what you did? With Yazawa-san? Cause someone to see color?” “I don’t see why you shouldn’t be able to.” Umi said with a warm smile. “If you find someone who hasn’t met their soulmate. It could happen. You need a strong emotional bond and physical attraction. That’s how it happened between me and Nico.” “Oooh, how romantic! I would love to hear the whole thing!” Anju exclaimed brightly. “Of course. Let me just get us some dri…” Umi trailed off as her phone chimed. She grimaced, finding it was from Nozomi, telling her to come over to talk to Nico. “Um…” “You have to go?” Anju asked knowingly. “I…” “Hey, Umi!” Umi looked up in time to see a blue haired man approach with a steaming cup of coffee. “Chrom! Oh, um...this is Yuki Anju. Anju, this is Chrom.” “The soulmate, right...Hisa mentioned her.” Anju’s eyes widened as Chrom’s colbert blue eyes turned to her. “Y-You have gorgeous eyes.” Chrom looked puzzled, questioningly pointing to himself. “I’m so sorry.” Anju apologized, embarrassed by her outburst. “I just started seeing color and your eyes are just so different.” Chrom smiled easily as Anju’s cheeks seemed to darken. He leaned toward Umi, lowering his voice. “She’s cute.” He told her before he addressed Anju. “It’s a pity I can’t see yours. They are light though.” Umi looked between them in confusion for a moment. “Um...I’ve been called away for a while. Chrom, could you keep my...could you keep Anju company?” “Sure. I have some time.” Chrom answered with a shrug of his shoulders. He sat down in the seat Umi vacated. “Have fun.” Umi lightly teased Anju before she picked up her bag and turned, walking out of the cafe. At the door she turned back to see the two smiling at each other, Anju blushing as she spoke. She shook her head in amusement, feeling lighter than when she had entered the cafe. She just had to find Nico now. ---- “Finally!” Nozomi exclaimed as she opened the door to find Umi standing there. She grabbed Umi’s arm, tugging her into the apartment and closed the door. “Can you go and talk to your girlfriend, please? We’ve done our best but she’s...we don’t know what else to do.” “I think she’s crying in the bathroom again.” Saya said with a sigh as she walked around the corner with Hisa next to her. “Hisa wanted to kick the door down.” Umi frowned at Hisa. “Do you always think with your fists?” “Hey, I’m trying to help.” Hisa indignantly crossed her arms in front of her chest. “How did your date go?” “I think she prefers boys. Especially blue eyed boys.” Umi answered. “Now where is Nico.” “The bathroom.” Saya said slowly, frowning at Umi. “Remember? She’s locked herself in. Hisa wanted to knock down the door…?” Nozomi smirked, covering her mouth with her hand to hide it. Umi steeled herself and walked toward the bathroom determinedly. Reaching it she raised a hand, knocking on the door. “Nico?” “GO AWAY!” Nico called back loudly, her voice thick with emotion. Umi gripped her chest, overcome with emotion. She knew it wasn’t her own, at least not completely. She sighed, pressing her forehead to the doorframe. “Nico, open the door. Please. Nothing happened at all. I chose you. I even told her I’m in love with you. Just...let me in, okay? I just want to talk. Please?” There was a moment of silence before the door opened and Nico appeared. Umi moved into the bathroom and wrapped her arms around her tearful girlfriend, kicking the door shut behind her. She felt Nico resist for a moment before the girl seemed to melt into her arms. Someone knocked hard on the door. “APPARENTLY SHE’S STRAIGHT!” Hisa yelled through the door. Nico pulled away from Umi, frowning. “Why aren’t you on your date anyway? Hisa said you were going for coffee.” “I was but…” Umi reached out, sighing as Nico stepped away. “I want to be with you. I felt your emotions. I want to hold you, Nico. Please…” “You mean Nozomi called you even though I TOLD HER NOT TO!” Nico raised her voice so Nozomi could heard her through the door. “Nico, she’s straight.” Umi insisted. “Neither of us wanted this. She’s with CHROM right now!” “I KNEW IT!” Another yell came from outside. “Saya!” Nozomi exclaimed loudly. “Just trust me, Nico.” Umi continued softly, staring at Nico imploringly. “If I was interested in her, why am I even here? I only went on that date because I felt like I had to...and then to tell her I don’t want anything to do with this ‘soulmate’ thing. I have my soulmate. I chose my soulmate!” Nico blinked against fresh tears. “I love you.” “I love you too.” Umi hugged Nico again, blinking back her own tears. “So much. I don’t ever want to let go of this. I want to make you see color. Brighten your world.” Nico drew back slightly and kissed Umi hard, a sharp whimper passing her lips. She opened her eyes slightly just to see color spike around them before she closed them again. Slowly she pulled away, looking around. “It’s brighter than usual…” “Our bond is only growing stronger, Nico.” Umi said softly, brushing her thumb against Nico’s cheek. “I’m never going to leave you. I promise.” Nico smiled faintly at that and nodded her head. “I trust you.” She leaned against Umi’s shoulder, their fingers interlocking between them and felt a gentle kiss being pressed to her head. ----- “Just a little bit further, Honoka-chan.” Hanayo panted as she jogged down the street. Honoka was a step or so behind her, just as out of breath. Hanayo felt something vibrate in her pocket and briefly worried that if she stopped Umi would yell at her. Realizing Umi wouldn’t be able to see her though she stopped and took her phone out of her pocket. Seeing that it was Miyu calling she beamed and answered the phone. “Miyu-chan!” “Hey.” Miyu said quietly. “You sound out of breath. Are you okay?” “Just running with Honoka-chan.” Hanayo answered, glancing at Honoka who was bent over with her hands on her knees. “You’re not still thinking about what I said, are you?” Miyu asked guiltily. “All I meant was that you eat a lot of rice. I wasn’t saying there way anything wrong with you. I...like the way you look.” Hanayo blushed, a soft smile tugging at her lips. “It’s okay, Miyu-chan.” Miyu awkwardly cleared her throat. “Uh...I have the laptop. Maybe you could come over?” “Sure. I’ll be over in twenty minutes…” “Oh, can I come?!” Honoka asked, looking up hopefully. “Please?! Umi’s gonna make me run more if she finds me.” Hanayo sighed and rolled her eyes. “Can Honoka-chan come over? She’s hiding from Umi-chan.” “Sure.” Miyu said brightly. “I’ll see you soon.” “Bye.” Hanayo ended the call and slipped her phone into her pocket, noticing Honoka beaming excitedly. “Let’s hurry, I think I hear Umi-chan coming…” Honoka’s eyes widened and she quickly dashed off down the street. Hanayo quickly followed, catching up with Honoka after a moment, grabbing her wrist. “Time to hit the train!” ---- Upon being led into the living room by Miyu, Honoka did a double-take when she saw a blue haired woman sitting on the couch. For a moment, she thought it was Umi. She quickly realized who it must have been. “You must be Umi-chan’s sister!” She exclaimed brightly as she walked forward. “I’m Kousaka Honoka. Umi-chan is my…” “Best friend, I know.” Kaiyo said with a small smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Honoka-san.” Honoka smiled back before she looked to the laptop on the table. “What are you doing?” “My girlfriend is gonna hack her girlfriend’s computer!” Miyu said excitedly, earning herself a groan from Hanayo. Kaiyo smiled sheepishly. “I kinda do want to know where she wants to get married. She won’t tell me anything about what she has planned for Canada. I can’t wait to see all of the girly stuff in there. I’m sure there’s a ring she’s saving up for in there. Every time I try to look at what she’s doing she slams the laptop closed…” Honoka smirked. “Maybe she’s watching po…” “She’s not.” Kaiyo interrupted while Hanayo shook her head in disdain. “This might take a while.” Hanayo warned as she sat down on the couch in front of the laptop. “You should make yourselves comfortable.” Honoka sighed and sank down to sit on the arm of the couch next to Kaiyo. “You look a lot like Umi-chan.” She remarked thoughtfully. She noticed out of the corner of her eye as Miyu wrapped her arms around Hanayo’s shoulder, looking at the laptop screen. “Technically Umi looks like me.” Kaiyo glanced away from what Hanayo was doing, looking to Honoka instead. “But I see your point. So how long have you been friends with my sister?” “Since we were kids.” Honoka answered cheerfully. “Me, Umi-chan and Kotori-chan are all best friends.” Kaiyo nodded thoughtfully. She was glad that Umi had had people in her life who cared for her at least. It made it a little bit easier to think of Umi being alone in that house with their parents. Honoka glanced to the laptop but she couldn’t figure out what Hanayo was doing so she settled for continuing to make small talk with Kaiyo instead. “So you’re getting married? When?” “Ah...we don’t know yet.” Kaiyo answered hesitantly. “We need to save up for plane tickets and Hisa’s...trying to save up for a ring but it’s going to take a while.” Honoka curiously tilted her head. “Why?” Kaiyo was surprised by Honoka’s inquisitiveness but decided to answer anyway. “She’s kind of...out of work at the moment. She was in the navy but she had an accident.” She quickly decided to change the subject. “Umi-chan was saying that you found your soulmate too?” “Eli-senpai.” Honoka answered with a small smile. She looked down at the floor. “Yeah. We only just started dating recently. She didn’t really...like me before. And she’s kind of avoiding me right now so I don’t know…” Her brow furrowed and she looked back up, realizing she now had the attention of Hanayo too. “Ah, it’s probably nothing.” “Maybe she doesn’t know what to do.” Kaiyo suggested with a shrug of her shoulders. “Maybe she’s scared of messing things up.” “Maybe.” Honoka mumbled. “You should be assertive.” Kaiyo said confidently. “That’s what worked for me with Hisa. And the other way around. Just give it a try.” “Thanks, Kaiyo-san.” Honoka stood up from the couch and stretched. “Do you mind if I use your bathroom, Miyu-chan? I just need to freshen up.” “Sure.” Miyu waved Honoka to go ahead and the girl quickly left the room. “Maybe Umi-chan’s not the only one having relationship issues.” Hanayo mused before she turned back to the screen in front of her. Kaiyo frowned at that and made a mental note to ask Umi about it. “If this is going to take a while I’ll leave you to it. Will you call me later, Miyu?” “Sure. Hisa won’t miss her laptop for one night, will she?” Miyu asked, glancing up. “I’ll tell her I let you borrow it and you’re using the guest account. She’ll be fine with it.” Kaiyo answered, unconcerned. “I’ll talk to you later, Miyu.” Miyu lifted her hand in a wave and watched as Kaiyo left the room. ---- “He-” “So did you manage to find anything out?” Kaiyo blurted out as soon as she heard the sound of the phone being answered. “Suddenly you seem more eager to know what was on that laptop than me.” Miyu replied, amusement seeping into her tone. “Who would have thought that it took me almost an hour to convince you to let me borrow it?” “Miyu.” “Fine, fine.” Miyu chuckled softly at Kaiyo’s insistence. “Yes, I managed to find a few things out. She’s saving up for a ring. She’s almost halfway to her goal. Which is...pretty expen...what?” “What?” Kaiyo stressed, clutching the phone tighter. “Hanayo-chan wants me to tell you that the ring is beautiful. And Hisa is getting it engraved. I know, I know. I’m not going to tell her what the engraving is.” Kaiyo smiled softly, glancing briefly toward the kitchen were Hisa was busy making dinner. “What else?” “She has a dress saved in her bookmarks.” Miyu continued thoughtfully. “She’s really not sparing any cost. And she’s looking for another job.” Kaiyo’s brow furrowed slightly in confusion. “She already has a part time job.” “She’s looking for another one.” Miyu replied carelessly. “I think she just applied to work in an office.” Kaiyo gave a short laugh. “It would drive Hisa crazy.” “I think she wants to save up the money.” Hanayo’s voice sounded this time on the other end of the line. “She’s even making a budget. If she keeps saving she should have enough money in nine or ten months. But she wants to do it sooner, I think. She really does look up a lot of wedding stuff…” “Who’s on the phone?” Kaiyo looked up, surprised to see Hisa standing in the doorway. “Um…” Hisa noticed Kaiyo’s hesitation and raised an eyebrow. “I heard my name.” “I’m just talking to Miyu.” Kaiyo answered with a small, guilty smile. “She wants to know what to um...get for Hanayo’s birthday.” “Liar.” Miyu muttered into the phone. She watched as Hanayo looked up, her glasses on the bridge of her nose. Miyu looked down, noticing the way Hanayo’s shirt hung off one shoulder. Miyu’s pants were a little long on her too. A sudden surge of desire rushing through her, Miyu ended the call. “Miyu...Miyu?!” Kaiyo sighed and let the phone fall to her side. “Guess she hung up on me to make out with her girlfriend.” “Her girlfriend must have looked hot. You know how hormonal teenagers are.” Hisa said as she walked over to the couch and sat down next to Kaiyo. She reached out, placing her hand on Kaiyo’s. “Is Umi here for dinner? I didn’t notice when I got home.” Kaiyo smiled softly and shook her head. “She’s with her girlfriend’s family.” Hisa’s brow furrowed slightly in concern. “I don’t think she’s stayed here more than twice since she moved in with us. Do you think she’s uncomfortable here?” “I think she just likes the Yazawa siblings.” Kaiyo answered, shrugging. “Nico’s mother especially wanted to see Umi tonight after the whole soulmate fiasco.” “Messy.” Hisa grimaced slightly. Kaiyo nodded in agreement and reached up, gently touching Hisa’s cheek. “Have you been getting enough sleep? You look tired.” “I’m fine.” Hisa answered, smiling. “You know me, I have to stay busy. No time to be tired.” Kaiyo shook her head in exasperation. She knew that with Hisa’s injury it was hard for her to manage even one job. She wasn’t sure how Hisa was going to handle too. “I’ve been thinking about...the wedding.” Hisa perked up slightly. “You have?” “Maybe we could plan it together?” Kaiyo suggested hopefully. “I know you said that you wanted to take control of things so I don’t have to but you don’t have to shoulder everything yourself. I can help out a little if you want me to.” Hisa’s eye twitched. “Why are you suddenly so interested?” “I did propose. I’m the bride.” “So am I.” Hisa replied, her brow furrowed. “Let me be the bridezilla damn, it.” “Fine, fine.” Kaiyo sighed in frustration. She supposed she should have known better than to push the subject. Hisa had already said that she wanted to manage the wedding so that Kaiyo didn’t have to worry so much about it.

“Don’t pout at me.” Hisa said, gently squeezing Hisa’s hand. “You just never really cared about girl stuff, Kai. Even in college you barely wore makeup. At least with me worrying about all of that stuff, you don’t have to. It’ll be easier, right?” Kaiyo covered her mouth, stifling her laughter. “What’s with the cute faces all of a sudden, Hisa? You’re melting me.” She managed to compose herself and lowered her hand. “I’ve never really liked girly stuff. Honestly, while growing up I much preferred to take my grandfather’s dojo over than grandmother’s dance studio. I guess that was when my parents started to see me weirdly. I guess I was a bit...odd.” “You’re still a bit odd.” Hisa teased lightly. “You’re perfect. I love the way you are. And I don’t want you to have to change just because of a wedding. You said it yourself, right? You don’t like skirts. And makeup makes you itchy.” Kaiyo gave a soft laugh. “I told you that around the time we first met. I didn’t think you’d remember. I’m still going to wear a dress to the wedding though. I know it’d make you happy.” Hisa smiled softly and leaned in to press a brief kiss to Kaiyo’s lips. “I love you.” “I love you too.” Kaiyo mumbled. She still felt like Hisa was taking too much on her shoulder and opened her mouth to say as much. Before she could say anything though her phone rang. She fished it out of her pocket. “It’s Kousaka…” “Honoka?” Hisa asked in surprise as Kaiyo answered the call. “Hello?” “I need advice!” Honoka complained loudly. “You know...sex advice.” “Sex advice?!” Kaiyo echoed in surprise. Hisa pressed a gentle kiss to Kaiyo’s cheek before she walked back into the kitchen. “Yeah.” Honoka answered with a heavy sigh. “You know...I have a soulmate now and I don’t really know what to...do.” Kaiyo grimaced. “Ugh, why don’t you just...do what comes naturally? Kiss her and see where it goes? That’s usually how it works.” “I haven’t really kissed her since our first kiss...not like that at least.” Kaiyo groaned in exasperation. “So kiss her. What’s the problem? You’re not that attracted to her?” “Huh? Have you seen Eli-senpai?” “I have but she’s...seventeen. What would I know?” “Fine then.” Honoka sighed in exasperation. “What would you do with Hisa-san?” “I would sit on her lap. Maybe nip her ear or kiss her neck. Look for where she’s sensitive.” Kaiyo replied casually. She heard coughing and looked up see Hisa in the doorway, a glass of wine in her hand. She smirked at the response. “Just try new things out. You’ll figure out what she likes soon enough. Does she seem like she wants to kiss you? Make out with you?” “Yes.” Honoka answered hesitantly. “Well do something but since you’re only sixteen and she’s seventeen you might want to wait for the big one until you’re eighteen.” “But Rin-chan and Biki-chan…” “Are a special case.” Kaiyo interrupted pointedly. “Trust me. Do something but don’t go too far. If you need anything else just call me back.” “Okay.” Honoka grumbled. “Thanks, Kaiyo-san…” “Bye, Honoka.” Kaiyo chuckled and ended the call. ---- “Are your eyes closed?” Honoka called from just outside of the bedroom door. She glanced around the doorway to see Eli sitting on the edge of the bed, her hand covering her eyes. Thankfully her parents and Yukiho were out so Honoka didn’t have to worry about them seeing her. “My eyes are closed.” Eli promised, a bright smile tugging at her lips as she spoke. “I still don’t understand why you got your outfit before I’ve even seen them though…” “Benefits of being best friends with our fashion designer.” Honoka replied as she stepped around the door into the room. “Plus who do you think models for this stuff?” Eli pouted. “Can I look now?” “No.” Eli’s lower lip jutted out further until she felt Honoka’s weight on her lap suddenly. Her free hand automatically went to Honoka’s waist to steady her and she felt bare skin just above. Honoka leaned in and lightly nipped at Eli’s ear, remembering Kaiyo’s words. “Why don’t you feel your way?” Eli heard a jingle of Honoka’s earrings and swallowed thickly. She kept her eyes shut and moved her hand still pressed to warm skin. She moved her left hand down, over Honoka’s skirt and down her thigh until she felt cotton and ribbons. “High thighs. She went there…” Honoka moaned softly at the subtle squeeze to her thigh. Eli moved her hand back up until it reached the hem of Honoka’s skirt. “Damn, Kotori made it that short. Umi is going to blow a gasket…” “Yeah.” Honoka murmured, her mouth still close to Eli’s ear. “She thought they’d be sexy. Senpai, move higher.” Eli felt her face warm at the request. She bit her lip and moved her hand further up, feeling leather and cloth as well as a flowy material underneath it. “Use your lips.” Eli did as she was asked, leaning into to press her lips against Honoka’s neck only to feel a choker there. She hesitated for a moment before brushing her lips over it until she found the latch. She carefully pulled it off with her teeth, feeling Honoka’s grip on her shoulders tighten. The ribbon fell between them. “Keep going.” Honoka instructed, her voice slightly hoarse. Eli felt a sensation coursing through her that she knew wasn’t her own. She quickly realized she was feeling the pleasure she was causing in Honoka. She let her hand travel to grip what she assumed was the lapel of Honoka’s vest. “Open your eyes.” Honoka instructed softly. “Th-That’s what we’re going to be wearing?” Eli asked, looking down at Honoka. She leaned back slightly to get a better view. “I don’t know how to feel about this. I don’t want people to drool over you.” Honoka gave a light laugh. “They’ll all be distracted by Eli-senpai.” Eli made a sound of disagreement and shook her head. “You’re the center, idiot. You’re the star. People will be watching your every move and that dance has...hip shaking?” “Are you seriously going to forbid me from this crucial performance?” Honoka asked, amused. “Maybe.” Eli pouted. Honoka gave a soft chuckle at the suggestion. “You really are a brat, senpai.” She paused for a moment, her smile slipping away. “Hey, um...why were you so distant before? Did I do something wrong?” “What?” Honoka frowned, looking down. “I’ve never done this before and...maybe I don’t seem open to you all of the time but I want to get it right for you. I don’t want to look stupid. Or like I don’t know what I’m doing. So if I did something wrong.” “You didn’t do anything wrong.” Eli flipped them over, pressing Honoka into the bed and crawled over, straddling Honoka’s hips. She took out her own hair tied, sliding it to her wrist. “I just didn’t know you wanted this. Well more of this...I didn’t want to rush you.” “You’re not.” Honoka said sincerely despite the fact that she could feel her stomach fluttering. “I want this. With Eli-senpai.” Eli smiled softly and brushed her fingers over Honoka’s cheek. “Don’t hold back, senpai.” Honoka instructed quietly, her eyes meeting Eli’s. Eli let a slight smile tug at her lips and she did as she was asked. She stopped holding herself back and she leaned down to kiss Honoka. She felt Honoka’s arms go around her neck to draw her closer and let herself sink down slightly more. As niggling as the worry was about Kotori and her situation, Eli wanted to focus on Honoka. She had wanted this level of intimacy for a while. Like Nozomi had with Saya and Kotori had with Maki. She had craved it. She felt Honoka nip at her lip and parted them, letting Honoka deepen the kiss. Her head spun at the sensation as she pressed herself closer to Honoka, whimpering softly. ---- Maki watched, biting her lip as Kotori walked back and forth between her closet and the suitcase on the bed, carefully packing her clothes away. “Isn’t it a little early to be packing? You haven’t even told Honoka you’re leaving yet…” “I just want to get it done.” Kotori said honestly as she placed another folded shirt into her suitcase. “I’ll be leaving the day after tomorrow. I’m going to tell Honoka-chan after the performance tomorrow.” “Right.” Maki mumbled, looking down at her hands in her lap. “The time difference between here and New York is fourteen hours. So I’ve worked out we’ll be able to talk in the mornings...over here. Which will be the evening for you. So we can still talk every day. More than once a day. I’ll stay up late.” Kotori walked over to Maki and drew her into a soft kiss. “Maki-chan, I-I want to do it before tomorrow. With you.” Maki felt her face flush at the suggestion. “W-Wha…?” Kotori pushed Maki to the bed and crawled over her, gently pecking her lips again. “I want to do it with you before tomorrow.” She repeated slowly though she knew that Maki had heard her the first time. “I’m going to be leaving soon. And...we won’t see each other for a long time. I don’t want to waste the time we have.” Maki nodded slowly. “But your mom…” “Is out.” Kotori finished, ghosting her lips over Maki’s. “The door is locked. You’re mine for tonight, Maki-chan.” Maki parted her lips to let Kotori deepen the kiss, feeling Kotori’s hands reach for the hem of her shirt. It was pushed up slowly, Kotori’s hands slowly tracing her stomach, leaving her skin tingling in their wake. As Kotori leaned back, Maki automatically sat up to follow her, not wanting to lose their connection. She felt Kotori tug her shirt off, their lips briefly parting before Kotori kissed her again. Gentle hands made their way to her back, unclipping her bra and Maki felt it being tugged off. As Kotori pulled away from her she opened her eyes to see Kotori look down as she removed her bra. Maki blushed at the fact that Kotori was paying so much attention. “You too.” Maki whispered, nodding to Kotori’s shirt. Kotori smiled at the suggestion and stripped her own shirt off without hesitation, tossing it to the side. Her bra soon joined it. “Wow.” Maki murmured. “You said that last time.” Kotori reminded Maki gently, her hand going to the back of the redhead’s neck. “I meant it both times.” Maki said, her eyes flitting up. “You’re really…” “Wow?” Kotori teased lightly as Maki trailed off, blushing. She kissed the redhead again, pressing her back down onto the bed. “I love you, Maki-chan.” Maki swallowed thickly, both overjoyed and saddened by the comment. Colors swirled around her, brighter than ever. “I love you too.” Kotori smiled and kissed Maki again, slowly trailing her fingers down over Maki’s stomach. ---- Maki woke slowly to the feeling of warm arms around her. She hummed in delight at the feeling and felt a kiss pressed to her forehead. She blinked up at Kotori, finding her staring down at her lovingly. “You’re so beautiful even when you’re sweaty.” Kotori said softly. She could feel a tug in her chest, drawing her closer to Maki. Maki blushed at the sentiment and gave the hand in her own a light squeeze. “I could say the same thing about you. Last night was…” “I know.” Kotori said softly. She didn’t need Maki to describe it. She knew what she was going to say. “I’m really glad I got to share it with you, Maki-chan.” “Me too.” Maki whispered. She suddenly remembered she was naked under the blankets and blushed. “I love you.” Kotori whispered. Maki felt a lump form in her throat. She wasn’t sure she would ever get used to hearing Kotori say that. “I love you too. Maybe I could stay over tonight and tomorrow night again?” Kotori chuckled softly. “What? You want as many repeat performances of last night as possible before I leave?” “I want to be as close to you as possible before you leave.” Maki admitted sincerely. “I won’t see you again for at least two years. I want to make the most of it.” “Maki, you perv.” “Also for our first time...you weren’t clumsy.” Maki said inquisitively. “I thought you didn’t know what you were doing either.” “I did research.” Kotori confessed, blushing. “I didn’t want to mess it up. And I want it to be good for you too.” “It was.” Maki said with a soft smile. Kotori glanced down at the suitcase. Or where it had been before it had fallen from the bed. “I’ll have to pack again later.” “I’ll help.” Maki murmured softly. She turned, tenderly kissing Kotori’s jaw. “You sure you can’t postpone the flight?” “Only if you ask me to.” Kotori said with a half smile. “I told you, if you asked me to stay I would. You or Honoka. I would only stay if one of you asked me to.” Maki bit her lip, resisting the urge to do just that. She didn’t want to be selfish. She pressed her lips to Kotori’s neck, trying to distract herself instead. Kotori hummed gently as Maki kissed and nipped at her neck. “We have to get up in thirty minutes, Maki-chan. We don’t want to be late.” “We have thirty minutes then.” Maki mumbled, running her fingers over Kotori’s side to her hip. “I told you, I want you as much as I can have you.” “Fine.” Kotori drew Maki on top of her and cupped her face in her hands, kissing her. “So take me, Maki-chan.” ---- “Thanks for the ride.” Nozomi said gratefully as she got off the blue moped Saya was driving. She stepped down, using Saya’s shoulder to steady herself and took off the helmet. “Who’s your boyfriend, Tojo-san?!” An especially loud, passing girl called out. “Boyfriend?” Saya grumbled, looking down at her chest. She patted the front of her jacket, earning herself a soft laugh from Nozomi. “Don’t worry, your boobs are just fine.” Nozomi lodged the helmet under her arm. “Are you going to pick me up later?” Saya pushed up the visor of her helmet to meet Nozomi’s eyes. “Of course. Hey, you don’t really think I look like a guy in this, right?” “You’re wearing a heavy jacket. They can’t see your chest.” Nozomi replied with a gentle smile. “If people saw your pink eyes, they’d know you’re totally a girl. And that long hair. And that body…” “Oh my god, now?” Saya flushed brightly. “Right now, Nozomi?!” “You knew the moment you got with me I was going to flaunt you. Especially this…” Nozomi grabbed Saya’s waist. “Okay!” Saya exclaimed, both amused and embarrassed. “I’ll see you later. Gotta go to class...though since I’m allowed to be late I could get breakfast.” “Don’t rub it in.” Nozomi muttered. “Don’t I get a kiss before you leave?” Saya chuckled and pushed her helmet up just a little. Just enough to let Nozomi lean down and kiss her. She heard whistles from passing boys and could practically hear the girls at the school gates swooning. She drew away, sliding her helmet back into place. “I’ll see you later.” “Yeah…” With a goofy grin, Nozomi watched Saya drive away. “TOJO IS GOING OUT WITH A COLLEGE STUDENT?!

“WELL SHE IS A SCHOOL IDOL!” “You just had to make a scene, huh?” Nozomi turned at the familiar voice, seeing Eli behind her. “Sorry, Elichi. I stayed up late.” “Same…” “Really?” Nozomi smirked. “Yes. And I’m not talking about it.” Eli said, rolling her eyes. “Oh, no fair. I tell you about me and Saya…” “I really wish you would stop.” Eli sighed as the two started walking toward the school entrance. Nozomi pouted. “You at least touched her, right?” “N-Not like that…” “Over the clothes at least?” “NOZOMI!” Eli exclaimed, noticing how close they were getting to other. “Stop. I didn’t do anything with her. Just...kissing. That’s all. I didn’t want to push things too far.” “Boring.” Nozomi rolled her eyes. “I don’t know how you can keep your hands off her.” Eli frowned. “Why? Have you been looking at my girlfriend?” “No, not like that.” Nozomi scoffed. “I just mean the soulmate thing. I feel like I can barely look at Saya without wanting to touch her. And kiss her. And…” “Gross.” Eli muttered, wincing. “I don’t need to know any of this.” “Oh, grow up, Elichi. You’ll be eighteen in a year. You can’t act like a baby forever.” Nozomi said matter of factly. “So what was she wearing?” “Our um...costume for tonight. The finished product of it at least.” “So that means I’m gonna look sexy in front of Saya.” Nozomi concluded, nodding happily. “Good.” Eli groaned and blushed before she heard someone call out to her. “Senpai!” Eli turned to see Honoka running toward her. She relaxed into a smile as Honoka reached her, breathing heavily. “Good morning.” “G-Good morning.” Honoka smiled brightly at Eli. Nozomi looked between them, raising an eyebrow. “You sure you two didn’t…?” “Nozomi!” Eli snapped, hoping that Honoka wouldn’t realize what Nozomi was talking about. “Nozomi-senpai, everyone is saying you got a ride from your boyfriend.” Honoka said excitedly. “Was it Saya-san?” Nozomi nodded. “She dropped me off because I was running late for school.” Honoka gaped at the helmet under Nozomi’s arm. “She’s so cool.” “She is.” Nozomi answered, smiling proudly. She noticed Eli’s brow furrowing. “But you know, um...Elichi is pretty cool too. I mean she’s the student council president.” “Eli-senpai is the coolest person in school.” Honoka beamed warmly at Eli who blushed in response and looked away. “And the prettiest.” “Honoka…” Eli grumbled in embarrassment. “You know my classmates have been saying I should run for student council president.” Honoka mentioned casually despite keeping a careful eye on Eli. “Would that be okay?” Eli nodded with a small smile. “I think that’s a great idea. You’d have my vote.” “Thank you, Eli-senpai.” Honoka said, blushing. She glanced around to make sure nobody was looking before she leaned up and kissed Eli’s cheek. Nozomi grinned at the sweet gesture. “Well I’m gonna head to class. Elichi, you should walk with Honoka-chan. I have to run. See you two lovebirds later.” “Bye!” Honoka called as Nozomi took off. She turned back to Eli. “Maybe I could walk you to class.” “I’ll walk you to yours. I don’t want you to be late.” Honoka opened her mouth to protest but she was silenced by Eli taking her hand, tangling their fingers together before she tugged her in the direction of the school. 

TBC

[jstonedd]

Otonokizaka Private Academy

Final Chapter

Note: I’m really sorry I never got around to finish it, so I’m finally posting the rest of what I’ve written. It would have been the first part of the next chapter, which coincidentally would have also been the last chapter plot-wise. I might have thrown in some other twist if I wanted to go longer, but I think it’s also nice to conclude on a calmer note. With that being said, I hope you enjoy the last bit of this AU. It’s been an honor to write for you guys because you gave me so much back, not just kind asks but also fanart and funny headcanons. 

Summary: Nozomi thinks she can finally get used to her new school.

Words: ~4300

 “Have you seen Honoka?” Kotori asked after taking her seat at the lunch table, looking around for her missing friends. “She stormed out of the classroom the second the bell rang.”

“Some bakery nearby is selling some limited edition bread,” Nico answered distractedly as she struggled to eat her lobster without using her fingers. Nozomi watched her in suspense, ducking in time when a severed lobster leg came flying her way. “Whoops, sorry.”  

Kotori carefully scooted her chair away from Nico. “Will she be back in time for class?”

“Who cares,” Nico grumbled, immersed in her task of eating her seafood without dirtying herself, “I’d take any reason to miss class. Like Hanayo. Calling in sick because she’s traveling halfway across the world just to see a concert, can you believe that? And she asked Rin to tag along instead of me even though Rin doesn’t even know the band!”

“Well, did you give Hanayo any hints that you would be interested in going with her?”

Nico paused in her movements. “No.”

Nozomi and Kotori shared an amused look. “Maybe you need to communicate your feelings to get them across as most people are not mind readers.”

“Blergh,” Nico let out in disgust, sticking out a tongue. “I communicate just fine.”

“I beg to differ,” a voice behind her spoke up.

Kotori, Nozomi and Nico turned their heads to the person who sat down at their table without waiting for an invite. “What? Don’t you agree?”

“Maki,” Kotori greeted with a nod, the first one to recover from her surprise. “I do think that Nico could sometimes express herself better. But are you really in a position to point that out? Something about throwing rocks within a glasshouse?”

Maki ran a hand through her hair to mask her tension, giving Kotori a stiff smile. “Ah you know me, never minded a little self-destruction.”

“That I already knew. But hey, self-awareness is the first healing step,” Nico said with a snort. She eyed Maki with a mixed expression. “Not that I want you gone or anything, but why are you sitting here?”

“Hm?” Maki stole a calamari ring off Nico’s plate and dipped it in a sauce that was on Nozomi’s plate. “What, am I not allowed to sit wherever I want? Besides, Eli and Umi were talking about boring business stuff.”

When Maki reached for another calamari, Nico slapped her hand away. “First of all, mine. Second of all, what’s the real reason?”

“Saw you wrestling with that lobster. And while you’re getting beat by dead seafood, your perfectly fine calamari rings are getting cold and I really can’t stand for that.”

As if on cue, Maki lifted her left hand and snapped with her fingers in front of Nico’s face to distract her long enough to extract a few more calamari rings with her right hand. Bevor Nico could let out an indignant shout, Maki’s mouth was already filled with her stolen food.

“Oh my god, you’re so disgusting,” Nico groaned.

“Thank you, I’m trying to fit in with you,” Maki said, her full mouth still chewing.  

“Wow, aren’t we charming today,” Nico sighed, rolling her eyes. “Just spill it already. Why are you here?”

“Is it so hard to believe that sometimes I feel like socializing?” Maki asked after forcefully swallowing her food down.

She was met with silence and blank looks.

“Yeah, I also wonder how I managed to say that without choking,” Maki muttered with a grimace. “Fine. I’m here because I want to be here. Happy?”

“Not until I earn my first music award, but that’s another question for that matter.” Nico turned to Kotori and Nozomi. “Question: Why is she here? Please discuss.”

“Really?” Maki raised an eyebrow. “You’re making a talk show out of this now?”

“The audience is not permitted to participate,” Nico cut her off. “Nozomi, your opinion?”

Maki waved her hand in front of Nico’s face. “Hello, I’m right here?”

“Nozomi,” Nico repeated in a louder voice, ignoring Maki entirely.

“Um,” Nozomi wanted to laugh over Nico’s and Maki’s serious and incredulous expression, respectively. “Well, if she’s feeling excluded from the business talks, then it’s understandable she would search for attention from somewhere else...”

“Hm, does sound reasonable…we’ll keep that in mind.”

“Reasonable your ass!”

“Kotori, your opinion?”

“Kotori, come on, I know you’re better than this,” Maki said in an almost pleading voice.

Kotori let out a thoughtful hum before a grin appeared on her face. “Isn’t it obvious? She’s here for one reason only.” And she directed her growing smile at Nico, who blinked cluelessly for a few times before slowly turning to Maki with a wide opened mouth.

Maki uncomfortably avoided Nico’s questioning gaze. “Like I said, calamari rings were getting cold.”

“Are you sure?” Nico asked in a half-serious, half-teasing manner. “Only here for the food on my plate?”

Clearing her throat and still avoiding knowing glances from three smug people, Maki added curtly, “And perhaps unfortunately also for the person incapable of finishing the food on the plate.”

“Wow. That’s the most roundabout way someone’s ever talked about me.” Nico tilted her head. “I’m not sure if I should be pleased or annoyed…it feels like I always have to make that decision every two seconds when I’m with you.”

“Well, I would have suggested a coin toss if you’re so obsessed with it, but I’m too rich to carry any loose change on me.”                                                             

“And now I’m annoyed.”

“See, decision made. Always a pleasure to help.” And Maki mockingly imitated a polite bow.

“So,” Kotori decided to interfere when she saw Nico’s hand grabbing her knife a little too tightly, “I’m so glad Maki decided to join us. Makes everything livelier.”  

“Are you certain? Because I’m pretty sure someone’s going to die…” Nico growled.

“Well, seeing that my next class is math, I sure hope it’s me,” Maki said, rubbing her eyes.

“I can help you with that-“

“Stop it!”

Startled, everyone at the table looked to Kotori, who looked just as surprised about her own outburst. But as seconds passed by, she remembered what had made her exclaim in frustration in the first place.

“Nico, put the knife down. Nozomi, take all cutlery out of her vicinity. And Maki…” Kotori’s voice softened. “When were you going to tell me that you’ve taken a sudden liking to seafood?”

Maki stiffened. Her eyes were fixated on a point in front of her. Finally, after seconds of no reaction at all, she threw up her hands. “Fine. Yes, I sat down here because of Nico. She thought I didn’t want to be seen with her in public and I should feel pissed that she thinks that I care about that at all, but I get it. I’m not easy to read and if someone ever figures me out, I’d like the first copy of that manual, please and thank you.”

She released a long sigh and tiredly gazed at Nico. “So here I am. Trying to do…well, something. I’m not sure exactly what but it’s better than nothing, right?”

Maki helplessly shrugged, keeping her eyes focused on the table to avoid Nico’s softening gaze.

“Now was that so hard to admit?” Kotori gently asked.

“Terrifyingly so.” Maki’s fingers nervously tapped on the table. “How do you guys do this scary crap? Sharing feelings and stuff. What a suicide mission.”

“It’s called trust,” Kotori answered quietly. She gave Maki a soft smile. “You trust the other person not to use your feelings against you.”

Upon seeing Maki’s skeptical grimace, Nico added, “Or in your case, you trust the other person not to use your secrets against you.”

Leaning back, Maki observed the other three sitting at the table. “And how do I know when to trust someone?”

She looked into a round of solemn faces until Kotori softly replied, “You don’t. You’ll just have to take their word for it and hope they meant it.”

Maki scoffed through her teeth. “Tch. And that’s how you get hurt.” By Umi, she almost added but bit her own tongue. She was blunt, not cruel. She knew that Kotori had been talking about her own situation when she had answered.

“Maybe,” Kotori admitted with a weak smile, “but isn’t it lonely when you never share anything with anyone?”

“How does that make me lonely?” Maki asked, incredulous.  

“Because no one will know a thing about you,” Nico answered instead, sober eyes searching for Maki’s. “You’ll just be that one rich brat with trust issues, but guess what, this school’s full of them, so you’ll be quickly forgotten. If it weren’t for your last name, you’d blend right in with no personality of your own. Because you never share anything about you. So no one will ever know anything about you.”

Maki’s expression contorted into a scowl. “And shouting all my secrets out to the world will make it better? Have you ever thought that maybe not knowing a damn thing about me is better than knowing all the garbage about me?”    

“I know all your garbage and I’m still here,” Nico countered without hesitation. “So are Nozomi and Kotori.”

Falling silent, Maki lowered her gaze. She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms.

“Do you think we don’t have any baggage of our own? We have loads of them and we’d be crushed by them if we had to shoulder that alone.” Nico turned to Nozomi and Kotori with a smile. “That’s why we need friends.” She looked at Maki again with a more serious expression. “That’s why you need to accept that we’re your friends. The kind that doesn’t care about your money or your name. The kind that you can trust.”

Maki uncrossed her arms, running a hand through her hair. She sighed. “I guess I could’ve ended up with worse.” She mustered up a lop-sided smile. “But then again, the only friendships I can compare this to is with Eli and Umi, and they’re not really setting high standards.”

“They don’t even trust themselves.” Nico chuckled without humor. “You can’t help them until they figure out who they want to be.”

“Well,” Maki’s smirk faded, “to their defense, that’s not exactly an easy thing to figure out on your own. I would know.”

“And how did you figure it out?”

Maki closed her mouth, eyes flickering to Nico, Nozomi and Kotori before they settled back on Nozomi. “When Tojo said she wanted to be my friend.”

Nozomi’s eyes widened and her cheeks turned red when she felt all eyes on her. “Why?”

“Because you said it so naturally,” Maki said with a frown. “You said it like being my friend was something you honestly wanted. Like I was someone that people would want to be friends with. And at first I thought you were crazy. Like, it really made me want to laugh that someone would suggest that.”

Before hurt could sneak onto Nozomi’s expression, Maki quickly continued, “But it wasn’t that. I think I was just…” A grimace appeared on her face as if saying the next few words gave her physical pain. “I guess I was happy. And that’s how I figured it out. I wanted to be someone that people would actually want to be around with. For more than just the money and name.”

Nozomi shared a quick glance with Kotori and Nico, and the latter one smiled gratefully.

“I’m glad I could help you.”

“Yeah,” Maki breathed out, one corner of her mouth curling up. “You proved to me that there are actually people who help because they care about the person. I really didn’t believe it before.”

Nozomi’s smile was tinged with sadness. She wanted to reply with ‘I’m sorry no one helped you believe it earlier’, but she swallowed her words.  

“You’ve got to share some of that special power of yours with us, Nozomi,” Nico said jokingly. “We’d be unstoppable.”

Kotori smiled at Nozomi. “Something tells me she already is an unstoppable force all on her own.”

And Nozomi ducked her head with an embarrassed smile. How she wished that this was true.

   Nozomi didn’t understand why she was nervous. It was just a door she had to open, just a door that she had frequently opened in the past month and even back then, when she had been afraid of the person waiting on the other side of the door, hadn’t she been as nervous as now.

“Ah, Miss Tojo,” and Nozomi flinched in shock. She turned around and stumbled a step back when she found herself staring up at Principal Minami’s kind face.

“Director!” Nozomi stuttered, her nervousness rising.

“I was wondering when you were going to open that door,” the principal said with a chuckle, nodding to the door to the student council room. “Judging from your hesitation to enter, I assume you don’t want to continue being in the student council –  but I could be wrong of course.”

“Actually,” Nozomi began quietly, “I do want to keep my position as the vice president.”

To Nozomi’s slight annoyance, the older woman didn’t look surprised at all at her answer, merely smiling back with a knowing grin. “Then I’m glad I assumed wrong. I believe Miss Ayase is already informed of that decision?”

Nozomi nodded.

“Then what are you waiting for? Let’s head inside,” the principal said and opened the door, entering the room first. Nozomi followed her, seeing Eli quickly stand up and bow in respect for Principal Minami.

“Excuse me for intruding,” Minami said with a nod, “as you know, Miss Ayase, our latest vice president has been with us for a month now. I only came to ask if that is an arrangement you both want to keep.”

Eli briefly glanced at Nozomi, who mustered up a nervous smile. Then she turned to the principal. “I’m sorry, Director, but I can’t accept this arrangement. Tojo is not suited to be the vice president.”

Both Nozomi and the principal were silenced in shock. Nozomi felt her heart constricting as she stared with wide eyes at Eli, wondering what was going on inside of that head. How could she reject her in front of Director Minami when they had already talked about keeping the arrangement? Why did Eli try to shut her out again when Eli had been the one to ask Nozomi if she would come back?

“Oh,” Minami slowly said, scanning Eli’s hard expression. “Are you sure? Maybe if you give Miss Tojo an explanation on what she could have done better, she could work on improving them.”

Eli’s jaw tensed. “It’s not her fault. I simply don’t think she should be in the student council.”

“Why?” Nozomi blurted out in anger, not caring if she seemed inelegant or emotional in front of the principal. “You wanted me to come back, didn’t you? Why are you doing this now, why are you pushing me away again?”

“Tojo,” Eli muttered through gritted teeth, glancing at the principal, “not now.”

“I do believe that there is no better time than now,” Minami said, walking towards the door. “I will leave you two to talk it out. By the end of the week, I want a definite answer.” Before she pulled the door shut, she concluded with a smile, “And I won’t accept an answer that is not a hundred percent genuine.”

The door was shut and left the two third years in silence.

“Why…” Nozomi weakly muttered. She was tired, so tired of always being the only one who made an effort to get through to the other person. And each time she thought she had gotten somewhere, Eli would move further out of reach.

Eli’s hard mask crumbled. Her features softened, showing the strained look in her eyes. “When I asked you to come back, I was only thinking of myself. Only thinking about what I wanted.”

“But I agreed, don’t you remember? Because I wanted to come back too,” Nozomi replied in exasperation. “Please, don’t lie to me anymore, Eli. I need the truth.”  

Eli clenched her fists. “As…as you probably know by now, I’m not the most popular person around here. I used to blame it on my last name but the truth is, I’ve made a lot of enemies myself. And the predecessors of your position belong to that group.”

Nozomi swallowed nervously when she was reminded of the unpleasant group of former vice presidents. But she still didn’t understand what Eli could be worried of, she was untouchable, wasn’t she?

“None of the previous vice presidents lasted long because I personally made sure of that. How well do you think they’re going to take the news if I let you stay? You, who came to this school just months ago, who has had no connection to anyone in our world before. A nobody to them.”

It stung, being called a nobody. Nozomi swallowed to get rid of the lump in her throat.

“Pride can be a very ugly thing, especially if you grew up privileged. And I know the lengths some people will go to restore it,” Eli said lowly, grinding her teeth. “I know because I am one of those people.”

Nozomi took one hesitant step towards Eli. “You…is that why you changed your mind about me staying in the student council?”

Eli didn’t look up. “I shouldn’t have agreed in the first place. It was arrogant of me to assume that I could live on without bearing any consequences of the things I’ve done.”

“Eli,” Nozomi whispered, getting a flinch as a reaction, “are you – are you afraid?”

“Of them? They wish,” Eli hissed, starting to recklessly pace around, “I know they can’t do anything to me. And they know that it will backfire if I can trace it back to them. Why do you think did the badminton club just accept the budget cut without complaining directly to us?”

“If they can’t do anything to you, then what are you afraid -,” Nozomi didn’t finish her sentence when she suddenly realized what it was really about. She put a hand on her forehead, wondering how she could be blind. “You think they’re going to target me.”

Eli stopped pacing, staring at the ground. “I can’t always be around you.”

“And I don’t need you to be,” Nozomi replied heatedly, walking over to Eli. “I’m not afraid of them.”

Eli slowly looked up, her eyes finding Nozomi’s. “I know you aren’t,” she whispered, her voice weak, “but I made your life hard enough. I don’t…I just don’t want to be responsible anymore for any pain you feel…” She stared at her trembling right hand, closing and opening her fingers. “I don’t want to be that kind of person anymore. The kind of person who hurts people because they themselves can’t feel anything.”

“Eli,” Nozomi breathed, taking Eli’s trembling hand and holding it close to her chest. “It’s not your fault if they choose to target me, they are the ones responsible for their own actions.”

“You don’t understand, the only reason they would target you is because of me,” Eli tried pulling her hand out of Nozomi’s grasp, but the other girl didn’t let go.

“Then let them come,” Nozomi said firmly, “I’m not scared.”

“But I am!” Eli burst out shouting, managing to step away from Nozomi. Her loose bangs fell into her eyes, her gaze wild as she stared at Nozomi like an animal trapped in a corner. “I – I can’t take it, I can’t stand the thought of you starting to regret everything, of you starting to hate me because of them. To them, you might be a nobody, but to me, you’re –“ Eli clenched her teeth shut.

Nozomi closed the distance between them again and before Eli could react, Nozomi threw her arms around her shoulder and hugged her, pulling her in until there was no space left between their bodies. “Eli,” she whispered into the blonde’s ear, “don’t you know that I’m just a fool who cares too much?”

END.

AN: It hasn’t been an easy ride and I thank everyone who participated at some point or another. I’m sorry if I’ve let you down with this ending, which isn’t really an ending just a point where I stopped writing because I didn’t know what to type anymore. I used to be a chronic ‘not finishing a story’ type of author and I’m still amazed that I managed to write Buy Your Love or Soldier Wars, so it really kills me that I couldn’t give OPA the ending it deserves. 

Long story short, the love live fandom has been really kind to me and it was really the best platform for my stories so far, so thank you for everything. Hope I’ll see some of you in another fandom or whereever it takes me

[prismofwords]

Three Wishes

Umimaki Month Day 14: “I Love You”

The first time they said it to each other was on a clear summer night. The words felt foreign on their tongues, and their hearts felt like they might explode like the fireworks above.

It’s the last festival of the summer after the third-years’ graduation, and the former members of μ’s decided to go together, their last chance before the future starts really pulling them apart. No one mentions it, of course, not even Honoka, probably because if nothing else she doesn’t have the money to buy them all drinks again. The streets are full of people, but the nine girls all stay together, enjoying the revelries. It’s been a while since they’ve all been in one place, after all. They all laugh as Nico utterly fails at goldfish scooping, and as she takes in their smiling faces, she congratulates herself for a job well done. Maki steps up to demonstrate how it’s really done. Honoka and Hanayo eat an amount of food that’s equal parts impressive and concerning. Rin almost gets lost in the crowd a few times, but luckily Nozomi’s able to keep an eye on her former groupmate. Loud, cheerful, bright--no matter how much time passes, they’ll never change.

It’s Kotori that points out that the fireworks will be starting soon, so the nine of them start looking for a place to watch from. They head to a spot not too far from the shrine, but there’s only room for seven. Before Eli can even start to discuss what to do, Umi raises a hand and, with the other, takes hold of one of Maki’s.

The younger girl glances behind her, but she already has lost sight of their friends. “Is this really alright? We were supposed to stay together all night, weren’t we?”

The one walking ahead doesn’t even look back. “There’s not enough time left to look for another spot. Besides, it’s not like we won’t see them again after this.”

They end up at a small park, some ways away from the festival streets but still close enough to have a clear view of the fireworks show. It’s empty, and the two of them sit down on a plain wooden bench to rest their tired feet that have done nothing but walk all through the evening. “Actually,” Umi starts, looking up at the stars, “it’s selfish, but I was sort of hoping it’d end up like this. I’ve always wanted to go to a summer festival with someone...important to me.” Her hair dances in the soft breeze, and Maki feels something welling up in her chest.

“Geez...I’m surprised you can say something so embarrassing.”

Umi still doesn’t look at her and continues. “Am I...Do you think that I’m someone important to you?” As the last word leaves her lips, something whistles across the sky, and the heavens explode in a shower of light. For a moment, they both forget how to speak.

“Ah, they’ve started,” Maki says simply, following the next volley with her eyes. “It’s been so long, I’d forgotten how beautiful fireworks are.” She keeps her eyes on the flowers blooming and fading in the sky. Umi just nods. Maki can tell she’s unsure if she should say anything. The younger girl tightens her grip on her partner’s hand. “As for your question...well, if the sound of the fireworks can drown out my voice, then maybe I could say my feelings out loud.”

Umi takes her attention back down to earth, giving her partner a questioning look. “Just kidding,” Maki adds quickly, sticking her tongue out. “Look, there are more going up.”

When she’s sure the older girl has turned her head back to the sky, she leans over and rests her head on Umi’s shoulder. “Maki...?”

She watches as the next volley shoots up towards the stars, wondering if they’ll drown out her voice. She’s not sure if she wants them to or not. “You know, I _____ you.”

Umi’s eyes widen. She glances at the girl on her shoulder, her face ablaze and her eyes pointedly not looking at her. Maki holds her breath, and as more fireworks pierce the night--

--something sets off much closer to her. “...Yeah, I ____ you too.”

The second time was on the first snowfall of the winter that followed. Their words tumbled out clumsily, their true emotions ringing out in the halating snow.

Umi can’t help feeling uncertain as she rings the doorbell. She has a perfectly sound reasoning for being here, but maybe it’s weird after all, she thinks. After all, who just shows up unannounced 20 minutes before Christmas Day? Especially since they already had a μ’s Christmas Party at Honoka’s house earlier. Maybe Maki doesn’t even care about Christmas as much as she thinks. And why does Maki have to have such an intimidatingly large house? Umi reminds herself that the younger girl still believes in Santa Claus, and really isn’t against spending time with her, and she herself has a rather large home. Besides, she can’t get a certain image out of her head...

She’s broken out of her thoughts by the door swinging open. “Umi? What are you doing here?”

Fighting the urge to take off down the street without explanation, the ocean-haired maiden forcibly plants her feet on the ground. “Well, it’s Christmas Eve, and my parents are out of town, and yours are too...I thought you’d like some company?”

A mischievous smile appears on the other girl’s face. “My, Umi, I didn’t think you were that kind of girl.”

It takes Umi a second to figure out what she means. When she does, her face heats up so much she swears some of the snow piling up around her melts. “Maki! You know that’s not what I meant!”

“Just teasing! Come on in.”

It’s not her first time in the Nishikino household, having come over many times before to work on songs. As she takes her shoes off, though, it suddenly occurs to Umi that she’s never been over just to spend time together. She wonders why Maki’s never invited her over before. Has she ever invited anyone over?

Walking further inside, she also notices that Christmas is most definitely not ignored here. The living room is dominated by a massive Christmas tree, decked out in layer upon layer of bright little lights and angels and stars. A mountain of presents lie underneath it. In the middle of the room, a miniature train rolls through a long and complex loop of tracks. Wreaths and garlands adorn the walls and railings, and the fireplace is barely visible behind the three large red stockings hanging in front of it.

“Pretty impressive, right? We always go all out for Christmas.”

Umi nods. It’s a stark contrast to her traditional Japanese home, where the holiday is barely even acknowledged. She walks into the dining room and gasps. “You have a banquet laid out here!”

“Yeah, the three of us can eat quite a bit after all the hard work of setting up the decorations. Like I said, we always go all out for Christmas!” Maki’s voice suddenly turns cold. “Of course, if it’s just me it’s still too much.”

Umi looks at her, noting the way her fists tremble at her side. Whether it’s anger or frustration, she can’t tell. “Maki?”

The princess of the mansion shakes her head. “It’s nothing. They’re usually home for Christmas Eve, but this time something urgent came up at work...it can’t be helped, right? It’d be selfish of me to ask them to stay.”

Standing there all alone in the middle of a house meant to be full of a family’s love and laughter, Maki looked like a doll abandoned and forgotten. Umi crosses the floor to be at her side. “U-Umi...why did you come here?” It’s not a hostile question, but a searching one, as if the younger girl couldn’t possibly comprehend why anyone would be there for her.

A certain image, of Maki’s devastated look when she first got to Honoka’s house that morning, flashes through Umi’s mind again. It was gone soon enough--it’s hard to stay upset around all that infectious cheer--but Umi can’t let it go. She knew right away that Maki was more upset about being alone than she had let on. “I had a feeling you needed someone. That you’d need me. Call it a premonition, if you want.”

“You came all this way based on a ‘premonition’?” Maki looks at her incredulously. “What, are you Nozomi now?”

“I promised you, remember? ‘When you feel troubled/I’ll come running right away’.”

That manages to get a smile out of Maki. “Just quoting our own song lyrics doesn’t help at all, you know.” She sighs. “To be honest, I...was hoping you’d come. I had a feeling, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up.” She pulls out her phone and unlocks it, showing it to be on the Contacts page for Umi. “I was going to call. Say, I don’t know, ‘Come here, come quick, please...’, or something, but I didn’t want to be selfish.”

“You know I would’ve come the moment you asked me to.”

“Yeah. But I hate being a burden, especially on you.”

“You’re never a burden.”

The grandfather clock in the living room cuts in then, slowly and steadily booming to announce the new hour, end of the night and the beginning of the morning. Umi is the first to remember what that means. “Merry Christmas, Maki.”

Maki nods. “You too.” She pauses. “And Umi...thanks for saving my Christmas.” Umi has to strain to hear her over the continuing chiming of the clock.

Umi leans in close, bringing the tip of her nose to meet Maki’s. She can’t tell if the noise in her ears is from the clock or from her own heartbeat. “I ____ you, you know.”

Maki looks down, but doesn’t push her away. The snow is falling hard outside, but all the two of them feel is warmth. “...Yeah. I ____ you too.”

The third time was by the piano in the room they’d spent countless eternities together in. It was cloudy, as if not even the sun’s light was allowed to intrude in their sacred moment, their last chance to make a wish.

Maki stares at the object being held out to her. “...What’s this?”

Umi blinks. “It’s my blazer button. Don’t tell me you don’t know what it means.”

The pianist takes it gingerly, as if it might shatter if she holds it too tightly. “Of course I know. I just...wasn’t expecting you to actually give this away. I mean, did any of them last year actually give theirs?”

“Eli and Nozomi exchanged theirs. Nico said something about belonging to everyone, you know how she goes. She gave it up when Kotori unleashed her forbidden technique, though.”

Maki laughs, remembering walking in on the aftermath of that scene. “Ohh, that’s what happened? Nico looked so shaken up when I got there, I thought Kotori just took a sewing needle and ripped it off her.”

They fall silent. Maki pockets the treasure she’s been given and lifts the piano cover. Her hands hover above the keys, but they do not fall. Her partner sits down next to her, and for a moment she expects her to pull out a notebook and start writing. “Two years, huh...I didn’t expect to have anything to do with music, but somehow some of my fondest memories were right here. To be honest, I might miss this room more than the archery range.”

“Yeah, I’ll miss it too.”

“Huh?” Umi looks at her. “You’re still here for another year.”

“Between my studies, the student council, and the Idol Research Club, I’ll probably be too busy to keep coming here if I don’t have a reason to. I’ve got my piano at home anyway. Besides, it wouldn’t be the same without you.”

“Maki, you shouldn’t give up something like that because of me.”

“Don’t feel guilty. It’s the promise I made myself. We said μ’s wasn’t right without all nine of us, didn’t we? Well, for me, this room isn’t right without you here with me.” She starts playing, a piece Umi doesn’t recognize but it still kindles a sense of familiarity and nostalgia in her, and a realization that days have passed by.

The ocean-haired girl notices how tightly the pianist’s eyes are shut, more than just being lost in the music. “Maki--”

“I won’t cry,” the younger girl says, softly. She isn’t even sure who she’s telling that to. “This isn’t a heartless farewell, so I won’t cry. Even if it’s not here, from now on we’ll still meet up just like always.” Frantic movements, a steady crescendo, she hits every note without a single glance. She doesn’t need to look, even though she knows she can’t mess up. --That’s because it’s impossible for her to mess this up. “Because it’s not an illusion. What we have won’t just disappear. No matter how distant our skies, I’ll always run after you.” The storm breaks as the last note rings out, quiet but deafening. “I...I love you. You’ll wait for me, right?”

The response is as immediate as it is resolute, the answer already obvious to the only person the song is for. “Neither one of us is waiting.” Umi stands up and extends her hand. There’s no button in it anymore, and in its place lies a promise. There’s nothing and there’s everything, and most importantly there’s everything that Umi was and is and ever will be. “You’re right, this isn’t a heartless farewell. Because whether I’m feeling happy or sad, no matter when, I want to be by your side. It can’t disappear, it’s only just begun, we’ve yet to reach our goal. I want to look at the same stars as you. We’ll run forward together, just like we always have, even amidst the storm.” At that moment, the sun breaks through the clouds outside, its brilliant light crashing into the room as if to illuminate everything that’s being laid bare. “Maki, I love you too much to run ahead without you. Wherever I go, you’ll be right there with me, right?”

The pianist is surprised for only a second, before nodding and grasping hold of the outstretched hand, betting her everything on their fervent wish as well. “Now come on, we’re keeping everyone waiting.” Maki nods, and they leave the music room behind them, taking with them the dreams they found and promises they made in its walls.