Work Text:
“I thought you said all the security would be in the main hall tonight.” White Fox hissed, running at a good ‘museum alarms blaring behind her’ pace.
“They were supposed to be.” Felicia retorted, a good few paces in front of White Fox. She had a good amount of historically valued objects in a bag under one of her arms, and a scroll in the other. “How was I supposed to know someone would be going for a smoke break at this exact moment?”
“I don’t know, luck?” White Fox said, and Felicia turned her head slightly to glare at her. The kumiho then smirked, which was quickly replaced with a shout, “Watch out!”
In less than a second, White Fox had yanked Felicia back by her belt, effectively causing her to lose balance and fall on her ass. White Fox had then jumped in front of her, and in a blur of motion, seemed to snatch something out of the air. Hissing in pain, she unfurled her fist and let whatever she had caught drop to the ground with a plink . Felicia’s jaw nearly dropped upon taking a closer look at the object. It was a golden piece of metal about half the length of her pinky, yet it could’ve killed her. Waving the trail of smoke from her singed hand and stomping out the bullet on the ground, White Fox used her other hand to hoist Felicia up by the collar.
“Don’t just stand there idiot! We need to run!” White Fox said, and let go of Felicia’s collar. She took off running, her feet barely making a sound as they hit the pavement. Felicia didn’t need to be told twice. She tucked the scroll carefully into her waistband, picked up the other bag, and booked it right behind her partner in crime. It was a good thing that Felicia had convinced White Fox to forget her superhero costume for tonight, or else the bright searchlights might not have skimmed over the shadowy figure along the wall. For someone who utilized stealth, she sure had an eye-catching uniform.
Felicia stumbled, and she cursed before she heard the ping of a bullet hitting the wall where her head would’ve been. Huh. Lucky, she supposes. She straightened up and picked up speed.
“Whitey.” She panted, unsure if the NIS agent could hear her. She could only be a dozen or so feet away, but the roar of helicopter blades was starting to pick up. They were running out of time. “Whitey!” She shouted. Forget stealth, they needed to get out of here. “Where’s our getaway?”
“It should be..” White Fox shouted back, and came to a stop without warning. If Felicia hadn’t skidded to a stomp she would’ve crashed right into her. “Right here.”
She pressed a button on her earpiece before saying something that was swallowed by the sound of blades beating the air. Quite literally like magic, a familiar card as large as a doorway appeared in front of them, reddish traces of magic in the form of flower petals fluttering down from the card and towards them. It came towards the two and enveloped them in a flash of cherry blossom pink light. When Felicia opened her eyes again, they were in what seemed to be a dark karaoke room lit only by colorful LED strips on the ceiling. A woman in a short black dress with a coat hanging off her shoulders greeted them with an upward tilt of her chin. She recognized her as someone she had worked with before. Tiger Division’s Auntie Ante.
“Getting slower, huh, Ahjumma?” White Fox asked, cracking a small grin.
“I can send you right back, Kumiho.” Auntie Ante reminded her.
“I’d prefer it if you didn’t. Besides, what if my replacement won’t lay you off missions for two weeks in my place?” White Fox said, starting to pat down her disheveled shirt before she hissed and shook her hand out. Auntie Ante rolled her eyes before pointing with her chin at the NIS agent’s hand.
“I thought you said it would be a quick in-quick out task. Got hurt?” She asked, her tone more curious than concerned.
“Yeah, caught a bullet saving her ass.” White Fox said, gesturing loosely as she turned towards Felicia. “No ‘thank you I owe you my life’ spiel? Or even a ‘wow that was so cool you’re the best’ mini speech?”
Felicia rolled her eyes, any gratefulness or awe of the earlier moment dissipating. She tugged the scroll from her waistband and tossed it at White Fox, who caught it with her uninjured hand. “Don’t forget the reason you agreed to help me,” She said dryly. “This should be thanks enough.”
“The scroll they had on display about nine-tailed foxes across the world huh?” Auntie Ante mused, and White Fox quickly but carefully, shoved it under her arm. The magician eyed Felicia. “And what did you take from the museum?”
Felicia grinned wolfishly before winking instead of answering. Auntie Ante sighed and shook her head, muttering something along the lines of ‘kids these days’ under her breath.
“Well if that’s it for the night, then I’m going home.” Auntie Ante said, spreading a deck of bird patterned playing cards across her hand. With a wave of her other hand, they started flowing in a line towards the wall, growing bigger the farther they got. Soon, one was big enough to walk through and she stopped beside it before turning to White Fox. “Remember, my services tonight come at the cost of those two weeks.”
“And you remember that no word of what happened tonight gets out.” White Fox reminded her in turn.
“Yeah, yeah, don’t want Seolhee to get mad at you, I get ya.” Auntie Ante said with a smirk, and before White Fox could retort, she disappeared in a bright flash of light and a swirl of cherry blossoms. Felicia snickered, and White Fox somehow conveyed a glare through her visor. She reached up and took the mask off her face before walking over to the karaoke bench where she had left her backpack earlier and slid it and the scroll inside.
“Hey Whitey.” Felicia called out, her hands coming to rest comfortably in her pant pockets. “Let me crash at yours tonight.” Ami whipped her head around to face her, her creased eyebrows telling Felicia she was already going to object before she continued, “I told my crew to take the jet for a spin while I’m here. Seeing as how last time I got a bomb put in my neck.”
Ami crossed her arms over her chest, but didn’t say anything.
“They’ll be back to pick me up by 10 am.” Felicia tacked on, and Ami let out a long sigh.
“Fine. But don’t touch anything. Don’t look around. And especially do not tell anyone you were allowed into my apartment.” Ami reluctantly agreed, and Felicia grinned.
“Thanks best friend.” She cooed, walking over to Ami and throwing an arm over her shoulder.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself now.” Ami growled, shoving Felicia’s arm off a little more violently than necessary. Without another word, she shrugged on her backpack and briskly left the room. Felicia laughed, and trailed closely behind.
◥✥◤
“Why are we stopping by the convenience store? Got the late night munchies?” Felicia asked, looking up curiously at the neon hangul on the storefront. An old lady behind the register spotted them through the window and smiled before enthusiastically waving them inside.
“No, I need some burn cream so this thing will stop bitching while it heals.” Ami grumbled, pushing past Felicia and through the sliding doors of the fluorescent lit shop. She greeted the cashier with a tone far friendlier than Felicia thought could come from the uptight agent before she made a right turn into one of the aisles. Felicia fell into step behind her as she turned, and smiled to herself at the sight of the NIS agent squinting and adopting a hunched posture as she surveyed the shelves.
“Why don’t you just ask that Snow girl to heal it for you?” Felicia suggested, her smile growing wider as she saw Ami freeze in her tracks and whip around to give her a deadpan stare.
“No.” She said stiffly, and resumed her searching. “It’s unprofessional, and the less people who know I was working with the likes of you, the better. Plus she’s busy.”
“Awful lot of excuses. You could just say you don’t want your dear friend to know you were committing a crime.” Felicia said, ignoring the dig at her. Ami sighed exasperatedly and snatched the burn cream that she finally located off the shelf.
“If you already knew, why’d you ask?” She growled, starting to make her way to the front of the store where the register was. “You ask an awful lot of questions for someone who already knows the answer.”
“To see you squirm.” Felicia answered simply. “It’s fun pressing all your buttons. You just make it too easy.”
Ami reached behind her back and subtly flipped Felicia off before putting the burn cream on the countertop and offering the old lady a small smile. She exchanged polite small talk with the lady at the counter before she pulled out a few bills from her wallet and paid for the burn cream. Felicia watched the whole interaction with barely concealed wonder. It wasn’t the first time she had seen a cape become an entirely different person off duty, but the contrast never failed to surprise her.
Just as Ami picked up the burn cream in her uninjured hand, the cashier hauled what appeared to be a multileveled plastic container from under the counter and offered it to Ami. Ami quickly objected, shaking her head quickly but with a few stern words and an unmoving look from the old woman, she reluctantly shifted the burn cream into her pocket and accepted the container. The woman’s face then burst into a grin, and they exchanged goodbyes before Ami turned to leave the store.
“What was that all about?” Felicia asked, the exact moment the door slid shut behind them.
“She just asked me how’s work, if I was taking good care of myself, if I met anyone new, and if I found a lover yet.” Ami grumbled, her words not even half as snarky as before. “And she insisted I take some food home. And share it with you.”
“That’s nice of her. Well?”
“Well what?”
“What’d you tell her?” Felicia asked, and Ami looked at her as if she had just grown a second head. “What? As your friend, I wanna know too.”
Ami sighed, and went quiet. Felicia thought the kumiho was just going to ignore her instead of answering, as she usually did, but defying expectation, she spoke up again.
“Work is work, I’m alive aren’t I? I meet people as White Fox all the time. Most of them bad.” Ami cast Felicia a glance at the last statement, which she feigned offense to before raising an eyebrow. “What?”
“You didn’t answer the old lady like that did you?”
“Of course not.”
“Mhmm, Thought so. And the last question?” Felicia grinned. Ami cast her an annoyed glance, and sped up her pace. Felicia matched her with ease. “It’s okay to admit that you are a terribly lonely individual who lacks the ability to charm women, and therefore gets no bitches.”
“I have a girlfriend.” Ami snapped, and then her eyes widened, realizing she had fallen right into Felicia’s trap. She bounced back quickly however, her eyes narrowing as she growled, “And you? Can you say the same?”
Felicia rolled her eyes. “It’s complicated.” She huffed, deciding to humor her so-called friend.
“Are you and Cindy going to be complicated forever?” Ami asked, smiling slightly.
“I didn’t even mention her.”
“You found someone else who could stand you?”
“Rude. I didn’t say that either.”
“Uhuh.” Ami said, before fishing out her keys from her backpack. She slowed down her stride, and Felicia looked around, finding herself in front of a small set of apartment buildings. It didn’t appear to be the most modern design, in fact it was a little rustic, but it cleaned up nicely. Ami walked towards the building and towards a set of stairs, gesturing impatiently for Felicia to catch up. “Quit staring and hurry up before the food gets cold.”
“I was simply admiring the building.” Felicia said, striding over to Ami, who had already begun to go up the stairs. They reached the top quickly, and Felicia noted a single potted plant on the barren balcony, which was unfortunately wilting. “Poor thing.” She said.
Ami sighed and unlocked the door. “You try finding a decent place in Seoul that won’t cost an arm and a leg alright? Then you wouldn’t be calling me that.” She stepped inside, and took her shoes off.
“I was talking about the plant.” Felicia said, before breaking into a grin.
“Oh.” A water bottle came flying at Felicia from within the apartment, which would’ve hit her in the face if not for her fast reflexes. “Water it for me, would ya?”
“Sure thing best friend.” Felicia agreed, and did as told, making sure not to overwater the plant.
“You’re insufferable.” Ami shouted, her voice coming from further within the apartment now.
“Only for you.” Felicia shouted back, eliciting a retching sound from Ami. She laughed and stepped inside, closing the door behind her.
◥✥◤
Felicia didn’t know what to expect the NIS agent’s apartment to look like, but it certainly wasn’t this. The apartment was plainly decorated, too plainly. Almost nothing inside revealing a semblance of the occupant’s personality besides a pile of 4L1T merchandise neatly stacked on the table. Felicia picked up something from the edge of the pile, something she recognized as hand sanitizer branded with an idol’s smiling face. The English text read ‘Minjee Fresh’ and upon flicking open the cap, she realized it was a play on ‘minty fresh’ and let out an amused breath.
Curious now, she looked at the other merch, and the more and more items she went through, the faces and names of Minjee, Jinsoo, and Haewon became more apparent. The pile seemed to have a severe lack of Luna Snow, who Felicia thought Ami liked the most.
“I thought I told you not to touch anything.” Ami said, walking out of the kitchen with a set of utensils in her unbandaged hand. She set down a pair of chopsticks and a spoon in front of her seat across the table before she set down a fork and spoon in front of Felicia.
“Why don’t you have any of your girlfriend?” Felicia asked, putting down a Jinsoo electric hand warmer. “And I can use chopsticks.”
“Nice to know.” Ami said, and she took a seat before glancing over at the pile. “Those were gifts from the members, so it’s not like I deliberately have a stockpile of all their merch besides the ones Seol is on.”
“It seems deliberate.” Felicia mused, “At least on their part.”
Ami shrugged, and reached towards the middle of the table, where the stacked plastic containers were and began dissembling and arranging them. Just as she took the lid off the last container and picked up her pair of chopsticks, the sound of a default ringtone started blaring from her back pocket. Setting her chopsticks back down, she retrieved her phone from her back pocket, and upon seeing the caller ID her expression turned almost nervous.
“Not a sound.” Ami warned, giving Felicia a fierce glare before she answered the call. “Hey sweetheart, how’s the tour?” She greeted, her tone changing so quickly that Felicia nearly got whiplash.
“Same as usual. Fun but tiring.” The speaker on the other end, who Felicia was certain was Seolhee, sighed. “How was work today?”
“That’s good. Take care of yourself okay?” Ami said, her voice becoming gentle. “Work was okay.”
Felicia picked up her fork, her fingers making the slightest noise as she took it off the table and into her hand, and Ami glared at her. She shot a deadpan look back before reaching towards the food.
“You should take your own advice. Always getting hurt on the job.” Seolhee scolded, and Ami’s posture became rigid, glancing at the bandage on her hand. “You better not have any new injuries when I get back.”
Ami inhaled sharply. “Of course not.” She answered, and Felicia smiled, thoroughly amused. Who would’ve known she would get dinner and a show.
“You don’t sound very convincing.” Seolhee said, before her tone became stern. “Ami Han, did you get hurt again already?”
Felicia’s eyebrows raised. Oh, full name. She wanted to say, but by the way Ami crumpled, she knew the kumiho was already under enough pressure. After a beat of silence in which Ami didn’t say a single word, the sound of a pending video call rang from her phone throughout the room. Ami nearly dropped her phone in surprise before panic briefly flashed in her eyes and she stared at Felicia with a What do I do expression.
Felicia calmly gestured for her to pick up the call and took a bite of the food. Ami inhaled and exhaled loudly before she answered the call and held the phone up straight, plastering a slight smile on her lips.
“Show me where you got hurt.” Seolhee ordered, and obediently, Ami held up her injured hand into the camera frame. “Oh my god. At least you treated it.” The idol said, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth in disapproval before she continued, “How did that even happen?”
“I caught a bullet.” Ami answered simply, and Seolhee audibly gasped on the other side. “It didn’t cause that much damage, so it’ll heal soon.” She quickly reassured her.
“Why were you shot at in the first place?!” Seolhee exclaimed. “You told me today’s mission would only be reconnaissance.”
Felicia smiled into her food, and Ami made the mistake of shooting her a quick glare. She realized immediately, and she blanched. Blinking, she cleared her throat and refocused her attention on the screen, hoping Seolhee didn’t catch on. “I didn’t expect one of the guards to be taking a smoke break at that moment.”
“Mhm. What are you glaring at?”
Of course Seolhee had noticed. Felicia thought the gig was up, but miraculously, Ami had found something to say.
“Oh I picked up a stray earlier today and am keeping them for the night.” Ami explained smoothly, and if Felicia hadn’t known the truth, she might’ve believed it herself. She placed a hand over her heart in fake hurt, but Ami paid her no mind.
“Awww.” Seolhee cooed. “They causing you trouble?” She asked, adopting an amused tone.
“Just a little bit. They keep looking at me and making faces.” Ami said, meeting Felicia’s eyes briefly before looking back at her phone.
“Can I see?” Seolhee asked, and Ami shook her head.
“It’s one of the shy mythological creatures that the human eye can’t see.” Ami said, flaring her eyes a bright blue for a split second as if to make a point. “But don’t worry babe, you’re not missing out on much anyways. It’s not cute.”
Felicia flipped her off, and she bit back a grin.
“Aw okay, I’ll take your word for it.” Seolhee said, and by the length of the pause afterwards, Felicia could tell the call was coming to an end. “Let me know if you need anything okay? I’ll find a way to get it to you.”
“Will do. Are you going to sleep now?” Ami asked, her smile growing soft as she watched the screen.
“Yeah.” Seolhee said softly. “Take care of yourself okay? At least until I get back. Don’t get into too much trouble.”
“I’ll try.” Ami said earnestly. “Sweet dreams. Love you.”
“Love you.” Seolhee said in return. “Byebye.”
“Byebye.” Ami concluded, and with that, she hung up the call and set her phone down.
“How sweet.” Felicia teased, grinning as Ami flipped her off with both hands before picking up her chopsticks and finally digging in. “And what do you mean not cute? I’m plenty cute.”
Ami didn’t respond, instead simply speeding up her chewing and scooping of food, which Felicia quickly matched, not wanting to lose her share. They finished the meal in silence besides the sounds of chewing and Ami brought the containers and utensils to the sink, unsure how she would wash them with only one hand, but she’d figure it out tomorrow. She turned to Felicia, who was staring at her expectantly.
“No. You’re a guest.” She objected without the other having to say anything. “Nothing you say will make me budge.”
Felicia sighed and rolled her eyes. “There goes my attempt at being nice. Anyways, where do I sleep?”
Ami pointed at the couch before she looked around for something Felicia could use as a blanket. Her eyes landed on the merch pile; specifically a 4L1T blanket with all members on it and possibly the only thing in the pile with Luna Snow’s face on it, and she tossed it at Felicia.
“Oh wow, letting me use your merch? We really are best friends.” Felicia mused, grinning as she made her way to the couch, blanket in hand.
“Shut up and go to sleep.” Ami growled, although her words had no bite. As soon as Felicia settled down onto the couch, she flicked the light switch off and retreated to her own room. As soon as she stepped foot into her bedroom, it was as if the long day had finally come crashing down on her all at once. Her eyelids grew heavy, and collapsing onto the bed, she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.
◥✥◤
The sound of a distant car alarm roused Ami from her slumber, and she slowly sat up. It’d been a long while since she felt so rested, and sweeping a glance over her room, she cursed as she saw the time. It was already well past noon, and the time she usually would’ve reported into the NIS building. She cursed again as she realized she’d left a notorious supervillain unsupervised in her apartment and jumped out of bed.
Nothing seemed to be out of place in her apartment, and as she reached the living room she realized the 4L1T blanket she had lended Felicia was even folded up neatly and left on the arm of the couch. Looking over towards the kitchen, she realized one thing out of place, and let out a small scoff. The plastic containers she had left in the sink last night were cleaned and stacked neatly beside the sink. Shaking her head, she couldn’t subdue the smile that took over her lips. Maybe she had found a friend in the villain after all.