Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A good characteristic that could be given to Tsukasa was that she's a hard worker.

A new era for WonderlandxShowtime had swept Tsukasa off her feet faster than she’d admit, but she knew it was inevitable. And at the spur of the moment, during a conversation she held with Rui while walking home, she decides she’s going to design some new outfits for their troupe, maybe with the attributes to make them look more like a unit while holding the eccentricities each of them liked from their old versions.

Like the pom poms for Nene or the dual colored ribbons Emu adored, maybe even Mikuo and Kaiko would want to join in on the action.

Perhaps this was a way to directly input something she had control over in all this change. The decision for their troupe did happen to coincide with the beginning of a new school year, eerily.

So that’s how she finds herself working on a new skirt for herself, sewing machine still going strong, her room as bright as can be in the otherwise empty house. A huge pile of white fabric is still present after so long.

Well, nearly empty.

Even at night, she’ll look stunning, since she is now just finishing up – or at least she hopes she does soon.

Her hair is split into two braids, the braids themselves only reach toward her chest but she ties them in a way that allows her to loosen them at the top to create volume. Even though she was working, she still took the chance to wear cute pyjamas. She has a pastel blue lace tank top with small straps and a white ribbon on the neckline with matching shorts. She’d usually wear a striped blue and white jacket, but she doesn’t want anything to get caught in the pins or the sewing machine. 

The clothes remind her of fanart she saw of genderbent Mikuo, and when Mikuo came to see her, he’d get excited when he saw the clothes. He’d giggle and say that he’s Tsukasa’s biggest fan as well, and Tsukasa didn’t have the heart to tell him that Ichika was always going to have her beat.

And to her left, entering her room, is her girlfriend, who just wears a tank top with her hair loose… and swim shorts she’s never seen Rui actually wear at the beach.

The difference isn't astounding.

At this point, Tsukasa’s given up, but she’s definitely giving Rui a glimpse into the world of a bedtime routine tonight, a face mask is gonna be on her face as soon as Tsukasa’s done with her work for the time being.

The latter events of the night are set as a reminder with the basket in the corner of her bathroom, and Rui offers no qualms about letting Tsukasa pamper her to her heart’s content.

It’s the least Rui can do when Tsukasa always ends up roped into her shenanigans at school. Not once has she been able to reprimand Rui, but she hopes it’ll change once she’s on the disciplinary committee!

But circling back to the costumes, she had finished Emu’s the previous week as well as Rui’s, and Nene’s needed revisions but she was almost done with his as well.

Tsukasa hums, keeping her hands steady on the fabric even as she starts up the conversation they were engaging in before again, “Emu wants face makeup, but I had to tell him he can’t have a full face of clown makeup when it’s not relevant on stage”.

Rui settles into her previous spot before going to the bathroom, leaning on her folded arms placed on her desk, still listening, “For Nene, I was thinking of getting him earrings, otherwise maybe he can match with Emu? What do you think, Rui?”.

“Mhm, if we chose for him to match with Emu instead of something simple like a teardrop, which wouldn’t really fit Nene, we could do a butterfly…” Rui comments, “He was supposed to have a headband with butterfly wings in the original concept Mizuki made of his costume, but decided against it at the last minute, much to our friend’s displeasure. Earrings sound more his style”.

“Fufu, but if we get Nene some earrings, Emu-kun will want to match,” Rui adds on “Say, Tsukasa-chan, why don’t we match? It could be with our hair, but maybe we should do spinning accessories on our outfits! I know you’ve finished mine already but~”.

While this is definitely meant to tease her, Rui has a hint of expectancy. She clearly would love to do that, and boy, does Tsukasa have a surprise for her.

She doesn’t even know how to explain it; it just kind of simply goes through her hands and straight onto their outfit designs. Mikuo would definitely classify this as a unspoken surprise.

“Because we already do…” she admits, eyes conveniently avoiding Rui but staying trained on her coat. She didn’t have one with her previous outfit and she newly gave herself a train with it.

“Aside from the stars? You are not as sly as you think, my dear” the nickname is said endearingly and Tsukasa hopes that her ears aren’t shining pink, or she hopes Rui’s eyes are closed.

Her director better not be falling asleep, though; she’s staying up to spend as much time with her as she can for this sleepover. She is also motivated by her latest purchase of nail polish, which she wants to try on Rui since Saki hadn’t had much time for Tsukasa to practice manicures on.

“It’s like it shows we rely on each other,” Rui sounds like she is smiling to herself.

Tsukasa’s mind drifts off to how her outfit now has a vest similar to Rui’s old one, how Rui’s new coat has a side that resembles the extra piece of fabric she had extended on her hip before, even the aforementioned train on her skirt was thought of because of Rui’s coat, she knows this! 

She would rather have Mikuo launch himself at her with speed that rivaled that of a determined wildebeest than suddenly realize how much she fell into this deep hole.

Obviously, her head really is in the clouds, because her reflexes kick in by accident and she moves her hand too close to the moving needle. It startles her but she has the sense to turn the machine off, hoping to play it off by saying she needed to go to the bathroom. She bites her lip to avoid making a noise, but obviously, she isn’t fast enough because she feels a presence looming behind her.

Rui gently pries her hands off the fabric after checking that she turned the machine off, and leads Tsukasa to her bed. Leaving Tsukasa to stay put, she goes to the chestbox in her room and pulls out a pack of bandages “Did you really think I wouldn’t notice you’ve pricked yourself? Let me take care of it”.

Tsukasa wants to protest and say she isn’t a child, that she can do this by herself, but she gives in to the smallest part of her that wants to be spoiled in many ways, even little ones like this.

“A director always takes care of her actors, huh?”.

“That much is true, but when the director’s lover is hurt, even more priority is placed on them”.

It’s silent as Rui patches up her finger, and it’s quick, but Tsukasa’s eyes just stay trained on the purple bandage Rui chose. The kiss the purple-haired girl leaves on the tip of her pricked finger only makes this more apparent.

“Tsukasa-chan?” Rui asks, “Is your head in the clouds?”. “It’s not!” Tsukasa says without elaborating.

Yet with a few more persuading words, Tsukasa admits that she really didn’t think about how she appeared to have drawn inspiration from both their old outfits, certainly having swapped them around. Her lack of reasoning just raises a few questions, which she shouldn’t have if she wants to wear this new outfit with full confidence.

Nene liked to call Rui down bad; perhaps Tsukasa was even more so, especially since she still found Rui pretty with her horrid ability to choose the worst color combos.

"If it really is that unclear, maybe I should rethink a few things…” Tsukasa wonders out loud but Rui is quick to deny such a thing, standing up and walking over to the dress form where most of Tsukasa’s outfit was. 

“I deny such a thing, you’re almost done, so I highly doubt you are unhappy with your work,” Rui starts as she motions for Tsukasa to slip her hands through the sleeves, “I didn’t know a few words of mine could make you think differently, fufu maybe you’re just sleepy”.

Rui just looks at her with a curious tilt of her head and places the sash over the coat. Before Tsukasa can even question her movements, she’s being whisked back to her mirror.

The coat looks way bigger because of her shorts and the dark blue surprisingly looks well against the pastel blue, but it isn’t coordinated at all.

Rui appears behind her, her height making it easy to poke her head over her shoulder “So, does it look better now that you’re wearing it?”.

“I am in my pajamas with my unfinished outfit on in a weird combo, and my hair is messy” she deadpans but Rui’s soft expression doesn’t let up “No matter what you look like, you’ll always be stunning to me. Yet even if you cannot see it, no matter your appearance, your heart is beautiful as well”.

The sudden compliment makes Tsukasa’s heart do three somersaults in a row and jump as high as Emu had when he launched himself off the Wonderstage the first time they had met. 

She lightly punches Rui’s shoulder “Alright, let me get back to work! You’re the biggest distraction ever…”.

Rui smirks, “You’re the one who invited me, Tsukasa-chan”.

Tsukasa can’t refute it because it’s true and maybe she doesn’t need to anyway, since Rui is always welcome at her side, even for more mundane activities like sewing and costume making.

“Should we stop for tonight? I’m sure you’d do well with a break and I don’t have a clue about how to apply a face mask,” Rui says, diverting the topic of conversation successfully as Tsukasa moves quickly to store her work and drag Rui to her bathroom so they can fetch her supplies.

She unintentionally leaves her phone upside on her bed, letting Mikuo pop up to look around the room. 

(He doesn’t comment on the way the parts of Tsukasa’s outfit lie messily next to him, but he does smile at the other finished outfits. He wants to go over and try to touch them, but the phone limits his reach).

When the star enters her room once more, basket secure and her director behind her, she fails to notice the catboy excitedly waving to them, “Hello! I want a makeover too! Can Tsukasa-chan make me a pretty dress and give me sparkly nails?”.

“WAH MIKUO!” she screams and tumbles back into Rui, who steadies her in her arms, “Fufu, seems Tsukasa-chan has a new client, your clothes are a hit”.

“Of course, they’re a hit!” Tsukasa proclaims, “World future stars are great at any skill they desire to conquer!”. The basket stops her from posing.

“Except being able to avoid being flustered~” Rui teases dangerously close to her ear, resulting in Tsukasa finally standing up straight again “Anyway! Mikou, do you want to see them up close? I can even get Rui to wear hers”.

Rui agrees to do that and Mikou squeals with delight, sitting cross-legged and eager, as Rui makes her way to grab the outfit. His ears twitch in anticipation, completely ignoring how his timing was random.

Not that either girl minded.

And now, it's a bonus that Tsukasa can have a test showcase.

The following week, they all made a debut in a spontaneous show in the middle of Phoenix Wonderland, cast members and visitors alike being drawn to the show and shiny new appearances. of its enthusiastic members.

She hears one girl point out the smiley face buttons on Nene’s front and another boy point out the silly small top hat Emu decided to add on at the last minute. While Tsukasa subconsciously soaks up the compliments in her mind, the one she hears about someone pointing out how the stars littering Rui’s coat matches the star chain on the flaps on Tsukasa’s front stays with her for longer.

Tsukasa won’t get a big head about it, she swears, but it's really nice to hear from their fans!

But hearing the compliments coming from Rui were even better.

Chapter Text

When Rui turned down the initial invitation from Asahi, she never imagined she'd be involved with Arcland again. But she is not opposed to such a thing as the workshop was able to let her reflect on things she hadn’t acknowledged before.

And she was stunned that the director she admired, Tom Gray, was an instructor as well. Truly, she was grateful for this workshop—

Yet she already hits a weirdly timed hurdle when she has Asahi perform her self-introduction.

“...But having Tom watch your production is like a dream come true”.

She cannot be boring; she doesn’t want the shows she came up with to be dwindled down to that word. And she got so concerned that she lost sleep. Her whole group noticed, Nene had caught on almost immediately and reluctantly accepted her excuse for the eyebags “...I get it, but don't push yourself too hard”.

But her stubbornest friend refused to accept it.

Later, after the workshop had concluded for the day, Tsukasa checked on her when she was alone. Rui had been looking at what she had written for her self-introduction, remembering the criticisms at the end.

How could she make her performance less boring, more likely to make the audience smile? 

Seeing Tsukasa standing over her, with her hair tied into a high ponytail, with part of her hair wrapped around her tie to conceal the band, still in her practice clothes, just brought a smile to her face. Seeing Tsukasa tended to elicit that reaction. Rui looked up at her a little tiredly and said, “Hello, Tsukasa-chan”.

She was frowning as she crouched down in front of her, pushing her bangs up and keeping her hand there, “Hmm, no fever”. Rui leans into Tsukasa’s hands when she feels soft thumbs rub the space under her eyes, and hadn’t even noticed how she had invaded her personal space, but wasn’t opposed to it.

“Fufu, what are you doing?” Rui asks as Tsukasa’s frown becomes even deeper. She knows that Tsukasa has acknowledged that she said they had nothing to worry about, but it was certainly a losing battle.

“Spend tonight at my house, I’ll at least give you good concealer. And I won’t take no for an answer!”. Rui had wanted to decline, to continue working in the silence of her garage, but she also could not deny wanting to jump on another opportunity to spend the night with her.

She wants it to become second nature for them to do so. Even if they are still friends…

That night, Tsukasa spends a lot of time giving Rui water in case she was dehydrated and makes her go to sleep in her own bed. Giggles were coming from both of them since Tsukasa had started staring at Rui to make sure she’d sleep.

“Oya, Tsukasa-chan can’t help but admire my beauty~”.

“Be quiet!”.

“I’ll just stare at you then, so it’s fair. After all, you’ve so graciously taken on the role of my personal nurse”.

“...YOU!”.

She wakes up with Tsukasa’s hand clutching tightly onto hers early in the morning and suddenly feels a rush of energy. She, unwillingly, leaves the safety of Tsukasa’s bed to go sit at her desk, writing in the notebook she had brought along while Tsukasa’s snores accompany her in the background.

The question she was answering was: how can she express what she wants to in her performances? Express herself in her shows?

It needs to be her story, a story she can comfortably dream about. Well, that’s just one thing she thought about when she talked with one of the inhabitants of the sekai, Luki. If she is so caught up and worried about everything to the point she couldn’t even have pleasant dreams, then maybe she needs to ask someone to help her wake up.

“Especially this time, you probably have people close to you that you can rely on, right?” Luki had yawned when he said that, sleepily rubbing his eyes.

And she settles back into the bed before Tsukasa’s alarm goes off, admittedly getting closer than the previous night, and intertwining their hands together again. She tells herself it's because Tsukasa will pout and get huffy that she hadn’t slept the full night; she also tells herself that her pining is as obvious as Nene says, but Tsukasa is the world's most oblivious girl.

She keeps her thoughts to herself so as not to worry anyone from their troupe, especially Tsukasa, as in this moment she just wanted to focus on her actor’s warmth, a brief moment of relief before she put her all into it once again.

The show she saw Asahi star in was the next point that made her realize what direction she wanted to go in, even if it was presumptuous to even compare her work to Tom’s. She couldn’t create a show that would move people's hearts to that extent — yet.

"I think what's needed is your own feelings and experiences".

"My own...?".

The conversation she had with the director she admired resonated with her even more at this very moment, minutes before her work would be presented on the Arcland stage.

She wasn’t a kid anymore, tearfully asking her mom why she was so different, why the loneliness was so persistent; she was someone in her early adulthood, finally taking bigger leaps toward her dream.

She was now going to surpass her limits; this performance was her first attempt. If she failed, she’d pick herself back up and try again; she has the support of those who matter to be able to do such a thing, after all. And tonight is where everything concludes, yet here she is wandering around till she finds someone from her troupe before it's her turn.

She wonders if anyone is done with their costumes and makeup, and thankfully gets her answer when she sees Tsukasa hanging near the entrance to the path to get to stage left.

She’s dressed in dark blue rags, adorned with a black, torn-up cloak with a hood to hide her blonde hair that faded to a peach at its tips.

“How are you feeling, Tsukasa-chan?” Rui asks, making her presence known and startling Tsukasa in the process, “GAH! RUI!”. After this, they launch into a bit of pre-show revision, going through some of the notes Rui had brought up before today.

Now that Tsukasa has turned around, she can see her full costume.

Smoky eye shadow, diamonds drawn as a ring around her neck, and slightly ruffled hair under her hood with coincidental yellow eyes as circles with red outlines at the bottom. The sides of her bangs curl up, framing her face, while her length reaches just above her shoulders. She wears a braid above her forehead, with a single black ribbon passing through it.

Rui chuckles that she has included a ribbon because she cannot wear a bow during the performance. It's such a subtle thing to the audience, but it screams ‘Tsukasa-chan’ to everyone who knows her.

She’s a monster who is going to disguise herself as a human, so maybe little details like that weren’t what the audience will focus on, but she digresses.

“Well, there actually has been something on my mind,” Tsukasa says once Rui is comfortably at her side, the actor leaning back and forth on her heels in the meantime.

Rui replies, “I am all ears, Tsukasa-chan”.

“It may be silly,” Tsukasa hums to herself, stopping her rocking, “But this character I am playing reminds me of you, Rui”. Tsukasa smiles, like she always does, but this seems special. Her eyes have the confidence she had displayed earlier.

The blonde doesn’t elaborate, but it hits close to home for Rui. In a way, it’s like she is trusting Tsukasa with showcasing one of the most vulnerable parts of herself, trusting not just her acting ability, but everything that has led them up to this point.

At what may be the pinnacle of the performance, Tsukasa has to be in despair with herself since the true nature of her identity doesn’t change; it’s innocent and only seeks to have fun despite what is unknowingly brewing inside. She needs to express feelings she isn’t even aware of yet.

“Even if you grieve or raise your voice, you will never be the same as everyone else”.

The lines of what she wrote come back to her: for monsters, the loneliness has always been close to them, even if they should have given up and accepted that it can't be helped—

“But still, I hesitate here”.

Rui knows what it is like to suffer, so she can be kind to others, and because she knows sadness, she realizes how precious a smile can be. She thinks these are good qualities of hers.

Yet she likes to believe that no matter what happened in Tsukasa’s past, her dear friend (she wants something more) has always been spectacularly wonderful and kind, holding the most dazzling smile she’d ever witnessed.

Even if she had once forgotten the reason she wanted to be a star, it was just waiting to not be dormant anymore, and now she shines no matter where she stands, on and off stage.

“I am so lucky… I really am so lucky to know you, Tsukasa-chan,” Rui thinks without a hint of hesitation, without a hint of regret.

She steps forward before Tsukasa can question her silence and wraps her arms securely around the blonde’s waist, ignoring the muffled squeak to bury her face carefully in her neck to not disrupt the costume.

“Rui?” Tsukasa questions, voice almost akin to a whisper. All Rui can do is softly say “Thank you, Tsukasa-chan”. This is all Tsukasa needs to hear before her arms naturally come to wrap around the director’s neck, fingers lightly brushing through the layers of unruly purple hair.

She needs this, Rui needs Tsukasa, so she pours her unsaid emotions into the hug. Her warmth, her reassurance, her smile. There will never be an actor that shines as bright as Tsukasa will under her care and she isn’t saying that just because she is hopelessly in love with her.

She says it because Tsukasa has her utmost trust.

Tsukasa will encase the whole world in a star’s glow, and Rui will always recall how close she was to that glow, no matter what happens. At that thought, Rui’s hold grows tighter, more secure, but Tsukasa gives no complaints and laughs lightly and airily.

(It’s also an added bonus when she sees a pretty flush begin to show itself on Tsukasa’s neck, making her wonder if the tips of her ears have the same treatment before chastising herself for thinking someone like Tsukasa would ever return her feelings).

At the sound of footsteps, the two reluctantly separate, and Tsukasa smooths out her clothes plus adjusts her hood. One set of the steps is akin to a lively rhythm, while the other set is slower but still trying to keep up.

Sage and pink join purple and blonde, and all of them move closer to the stage.

Emu, dressed in his bard attire, looks like he wants to go and try to peek into the audience, but he knows better than to do so since the stage wing wouldn’t hide him. Nene comes in last, giving Rui’s shoulder a light squeeze before taking his place at Emu’s side “This is it, huh?”.

“Mhm!” Emu grins, the long pink hair extension at the back of his head bouncing along with him, “I am super duper wuper excited ☆ to see the audience’s reaction to Rui-chan’s hard work. So are you and Tsukasa-chan!”.

“I can speak for myself!” Tsukasa chimes in, “And of course I am excited, how can I not be when Rui is creator and director of such a heartfelt performance?!”.

Rui tries not to blush at her friends’ blunt admiration, but this show was not just something to call her own. “This show is a chance to showcase the results of the workshops we have done so far,” she starts, “...But let's forget about that for now, we are just doing what we always do, and all I can do is give my all and put on a show for the audience in front of me”.

Tsukasa puffs her chest out as a show of confidence with her hands on her hips, Emu cheers about how much fun the acting is, and Nene comments on how the atmosphere is completely different than before, but that it wasn’t a bad thing.

Rui smiles genuinely at all their enthusiasm “Hehe, to hear you all say that makes me feel truly blessed as a director”.

She then feels a well cared for hand grasp her shoulder firmly “I was worried since you seem quite troubled about all of this, but this is the answer you arrived at, and it’s truly moving! Rui, you should believe it with all your heart”.

She hears Emu let out another cheer, which nearly borders on being too loud for backstage, and she places her own more calloused hand atop of Tsukasa’s “That's right, however, I think I've packed everything I can into it right now”.

And then, just like that, the performance is about to begin. The lights are in position, and the production crew is ready.

But Tsukasa still has something to say, looking directly at Rui. Rui wonders if Tsukasa can see the way she is reflected in her golden eyes, the pure adoration that seeps out of her very soul for the girl.

“This is a new frontier for our director and WonderlandxShowtime!” Tsukasa happily says, “So let’s all get on a great show!”. Emu ecstatically agrees alongside Nene, who looks at them fondly.

But currently, Rui’s attention is solely on Tsukasa, who looks as if she is glowing from the light behind her, ready to go on her entrance cue. She is just giving her a thumbs up, but suddenly Rui is transported to the day the blonde had extended her hand out to her, asking for Rui to join her troupe once again.

The spotlight had hit her as soon as Tsukasa looked at her head-on, a hint of barely concealed desperation present; she wanted Rui.

And now, in the present day, Rui feels her heart grow warm from the journey to change that Tsukasa had helped her start from that moment on. The director clutches her hands in front of her chest to calm herself, to feel a little less overwhelmed, but she is grateful she is experiencing these priceless emotions.

“I am perhaps the luckiest person here tonight”.

If she could tell one story to her younger self, she’d tell the story of tonight’s performance in its entirety.

And she can imagine that little girl smiling widely.

Chapter Text

Not a lot of people can say that they dreamed of becoming idols when they were younger and then actually making it.

The members of Fantasista Squad could, even if their stories of getting here were different. On stage; Rui could be anything, as long as she maintains herself as an idol. Part of a squad of people with passion, a place Rui can feel comfortable in. On stage is where she felt safest, and on stage is where she wants to be.

It’s actually where she is right now, singing her heart out with a voice lower in pitch, a voice with a hint of elegance to it, and one that Rui’s ears pick up first, no matter what.

As she dances and performs, the tail ends of her cape flap around, her hair doing the same as she jumps in time with everyone else, even if she isn’t jumping as high as a certain ginger and blonde.

Rui just has a simple jellyfish cut, one she had seen in visual kei types, and her hair was thick enough to achieve the fluffier look. Her black boots keep her steady as she dances once again, smiling to the cheering crowd with genuine interest, her fellow idol members following suit.

But Rui wasn’t the star of her group, wasn't even the star of this performance.

There was just something about one of her fellow members, the star idol pouring her all into her voice right now, not even being drowned out by her white boots.

Tsukasa just looked so ethereal at night, performing on stage, even if this city was new territory for them in their idol scene.

Her bangs fell flat on her face with curled ends, similarly to the back of her hair, which reaches the middle of her back, and a portion of her right side is tied into a small ponytail with a blue hairband consisting of 2 golden beads. Sometimes she uses ribbons as well, but tonight she wanted to shine more.

Her bustled overskirt, with its blues and yellows, which matches the dual blue one Touya wears, but hers is much more flamboyant, and she wears shorts instead of long pants like Rui does. She is dressed mostly in white and the details of the outfit didn't matter much over than that since it was clear she was intended to match with Rui. Being in a group made originally from two duos will do that, maybe one day they'd have their outfits revamped.

The best part is the little pegasus chain that hangs from her hip, looking as if the pegasus was flying as she moved around.

With the times Rui spins around, she catches glimpses of Akito and Touya. The arena stage made it so that unless the choreo had them close together, Rui often didn’t notice them fully.

But orange and blue do match well together, just like how purple and yellow do.

Touya moves more like the wind, her hair flowing with the focal points being the small bun in the back and the maroon braid on the left side. In contrast, Akito moved with more energy in her movements, her messy layered mullet making it so she appeared more wild next to her partner.

It worked even if many wouldn’t have ever dreamed it would, Rui still sees the malicious criticism online, but no one ever takes it to heart unless it can provide an actual reason and an area for improvement.

Their styles are also mixed in with Rui and Tsukasa’s. They had previously been two separate idol duos, but joined together as one group after a successful collaboration. Junior idols and senior idols dancing together in one group seemed to appeal to the masses, but Rui knows that their passion and the story aren’t the only thing that draws the fans in.

The girl crush phenomenon was evident in both their female and male fans; the parasocial relationship formed between idol and fan was quite interesting. Being confident in her work, pretty, and friendly certainly allowed to be more popular in that regard for the rest of them.

So seeing gestures directed at them, like Touya reaching out her hand to the audience while smiling, when they believed that there was any reciprocation, did help.

Don’t get Rui wrong, she loved their fanbase except for the bad apples, but sometimes she feels she is going to have to compete.

Rui was petty; she could admit that.

During a moment they aren’t singing, Tsukasa and Rui end up facing each other. Tsukasa smiles warmly, looking as if she wants to giggle, but their mics are connected to speakers so she obviously won’t.

So Rui decides to stir the pot. She puckers her lips and presses a kiss to her hand, before blowing it her secret girlfriend's way.

Tsukasa stills in surprise before a more mischievous look appears on her face. She ‘catches’ the kiss and turns to the audience, looking as if she didn’t know what to do.

As the tempo picks up, she glides toward Rui and gives her a knowing look only she can see, before leaning in as if she was going to kiss her cheek.

A million thoughts raced through the purple-haired idol’s head before it turned out to be a duke. The blonde moved her hand away from her chin and waved goodbye as the audience’s, at least the ones that could see them, screams exploded.

Tsukasa then adds fuel to the fire by making a big heart with her arms, hands landing on the top of her head.

That’s almost certainly getting clipped for a compilation or a fan cam. 

That wasn’t the only gesture, but it was certainly bold for Tsukasa.

Rui had to hope the cameras didn’t pick up how badly her face was going to burst into flames, but it may have captured the giddy smile she held briefly before switching back.

At one point, she had also sent a wink into the crowd, but it was merely just a gesture to tell their friends they noticed them. 

A boy with long pink hair, excitedly waving gold and purple lightsticks in each hand to match the boy with short sage hair next to him, Emu and Nene, respectively. Emu looks like he is about to jump so high that he’ll land on the stage.

The other pair was a boy with black hair fading into blue with little star accessories, not influenced by Tsukasa, as he kept explaining to everyone, and a boy with his blonde hair neatly tied into a low ponytail, An and Kohane, waving their orange and blue lightsticks.

Rui will have to tell the other girls about their attendance and let it be known why she sent a wink in that direction, even if it wasn’t as bad as the indirect kiss she had sent Tsukasa mid-performance.

She knows there will be theories about who she was looking at, it’s amazing how she can think of all this while keeping up the pace in their final song for the night.

Or maybe that’s because she’s already finished, now backstage after the flurry of crew and staff had deemed them ready to leave for the night.

It appeared that Tsukasa was still on an adrenaline high while everywhere else had crashed a bit, but she was still chugging down the water so fast that Rui had to remind her to slow down.

“Tsukasa-senpai, you were wonderful,” Touya says to break the silence, her guard dog Akito behind her as she walks over to hug the blonde idol “You were marvelous yourself, Touya! You too, Akito! The stunt you pulled off had the audience roaring with excitement!”. She tries to hug her as well, but Akito steps back, “I am not hugging you until you’re less sweaty”.

“Fufu, saying as if you didn’t accept the cheek kiss Touya-chan gave you as soon as we were far enough backstage~” Rui chimes in, causing a glare from the ginger-haired idol.

Rui knows it wasn’t malicious; she was just embarrassed.

Tsukasa then clears her throat, “Moving on! Since we did such a fantastic performance—“ a clear play on their name Fantasista “We should have a fun after-party! For all the weeks we've spent for this mini-tour of ours! My treat!".

Her hand is still outstretched hand when she declares her brilliant idea. The star idol drops the pose when the Bad Dogs Duo don’t respond, watching as the two blink at each other before turning back.

“We’re actually going on a date…” Touya admits rather shyly, twirling a lock of her hair. Akito doesn’t adopt the same attitude, “Yeah, so let’s move the party next week, I’ve been waiting for months to get this reservation on a time we can actually attend”.

Rui chuckles, “My my, so thoughtful, Akito-chan”.

“It’s called being chivalrous, something you wouldn’t understand since you constantly try to strap Tsukasa-senpai to rockets that don’t even get approved for the stage,” Akito deadpans.

Tsukasa snaps her fingers, “It’s not a problem at all! Go have fun! Take pictures and get well deserved when you are done!”.

“Okay, Mom” Akito deadpans once again. “Akito” is said sternly immediately after and the apologies are half-hearted.

The nature of their group was like this a lot of the time, but no one ever says anything mean intentionally; in fact, she knows how much their juniors look up to them. 

Plus she can kind of sympathize with Akito; she had been planning to take her girlfriend on a small date, so was it weird that she was relieved that Akito and Touya had plans already?

“Have a nice night, Tsukasa-senpai, Rui-senpai. We’ll all have to coordinate a time with our schedules, but I am looking forward to an after-party” Touya smiled sweetly as she bowed, the slight jingle of the small gold threads on her outfit accompanying the movement.

It was a shame they all didn’t have the same schedules due to requested off time, deals and collab appearances, but Rui supposes nothing can be done about it.

“Don’t wanna miss our reservation, but have a good night's rest, we all deserve it” Akito adds on before linking her gloved hand (although does it really count as such when only one finger was covered, was it a fingerless glove or…?) with Touya, gently guiding the girl down to their dressing room.

Thus, after they left, she and Tsukasa began the walk to their dressing room. Tsukasa stretches as she walks, letting out a grunt only Rui could find adorable.

Well, she had seen comments about other people voicing they found it adorable when she stretched during a fan event, and it was caught on camera, but now was not the time to think of that.

But other than that, it’s silent until they are nearly at the door.

“They’re so lucky,” Tsukasa comments, “I wish we could all hang out but one-on-one time does sound pretty nice right now”.

(Tsukasa drops the world's most obvious hint and half expects nothing from it; they had just finished a huge performance after all, Rui might just want to go back to their apartment and sleep).

“Now, now, who said we can’t go on a mini date of our own?” Rui proposes, slipping into their shared dressing room.

(She took the hint, she took the hint!

If Tsukasa had dog ears, they’d be perked up alongside a tail that was about to wag uncontrollably. Since Rui hadn’t bothered to elaborate before leaving her in the empty hallway, Tsukasa rushes in to get more details).

-----------------------------------------

Tsukasa’s audience could only dream of being in Rui’s position, and she’d fight the entire fanbase to keep it – not that Tsukasa would look at anyone else.

The speculation online of who was with whom was a little exhausting but expected. No idol was exempt from it; she’s seen a photo being thrown around as the basis for a secret relationship when Touya was hanging out with Minori from the boy idol group More More Jump, but that wasn’t the main point right now.

At this moment, she’s walking down the street with her lovely girlfriend. While she was beautiful on stage, really anywhere, but Tsukasa had demanded she get the chance to take a shower before being whisked away by Rui, and then Tsukasa made her wash her hair before even setting foot outside their apartment.

They’re at a light show available for a limited time, perfect for the season. And the train ride is fast too.

It’s not surprising that it was going on; their concert definitely brought in more people to the area, and it was a good business opportunity.

The lights the city offered could be so pretty.

So she dressed her very best, and by best she meant a hoodie which happened to be merch of a certain star idol. She needs to remind herself to never scour the internet and get jealous of it, not from their general audience but from the few very adamant admirers.

“You’re going to draw attention,” Tsukasa mumbles, but she didn’t object to Rui walking out with the hoodie on. She had a mask and most of her hair was tucked in its pale yellow hood, so she was golden.

Tsukasa had also changed into more casual clothes: a simple white pleated skirt, comfy brown leggings, and a cute beige sweater with white hearts stitched on for fake buttons. She has her hair up in a bun to hide most of its peach hues, and tops it off with a cat beanie mixed with brown and gold stripes.

At the end of the day, as long as their hair doesn’t show, no one will recognize them going for a walk. Maybe the city lights will let people get lost in their own worlds instead of leading them to people watch.

They also had the added bonus of going at night since Rui’s idea had been to take her to the light show she’s been raving about. Tsukasa wouldn’t outright admit that she wants to do rather cliché romantic stuff, but Rui was more than happy to indulge her.

Tonight wasn’t the peak of the season either, so it's all well that ends well, since Rui had been playing to ask Tsukasa out on a ‘stress reliever’ date. It was funny since Tsukasa went from wanting to have a party to feeling jealous and wanting to have a date.

“Fufu, Tsukasa-chan is so cute,” Rui says without a beat. Tsukasa’s hand is snuggly in hers as they walk though the light tunnel and while she continues to marvel at the illuminated experience instead of answering Rui, the squeeze in her hand is all the confirmation she needs to know Tsukasa heard it.

“Truely no fan could ever see this, this sight is mine alone,” she thinks, almost a little possessively, but with incidents happening to other girl idol groups in the past “Well, unless the photo taken has me being the one with Tsukasa-chan, then there’d be no problem fufu”.

As the two exit the tunnel, they are greeted with the big bang of the light show, the whole reason Rui looked into this specific one in the first place.

“IT’S A GIANT CAT!” Tsukasa whisper shouts, pointing toward the display. Rui laughs “Isn’t it interesting? Maybe we can even draw some inspiration on how it's set up–”. Before she finishes that sentence, Tsukasa is bonking her lightly on the head “This isn’t work hours, just enjoy the view”. She then turns to look at the smiling neko better while Rui choses to just look at her.

Her idol, blessed by making the city lights pale in comparison to her.

The biggest display’s light barely compared the shine the moonlight cast, and even that appeared dull against her shining star. It's almost like Tsukasa intentionally chose her beanie.

The lights are shining on Tsukasa as she leans by the railing, and Rui wants to stay here for hours and hours. “The moon is almost as beautiful as the stars tonight” she whispers, trying to maintain the atmosphere between them as Tsukasa admires the lights.

Tsukasa laughs before turning her head to Rui “Does that mean you don’t love me that much if the moon isn’t fully beautiful?!”.

The purple-haired idol makes it so they are now facing each other; before gingerly moving her hand to cup Tsukasa’s cheek “It just means you shine brighter, so I love you the most. I’ll continue to love you until my last breath, and continue to do so in the afterlife. I don’t think I could ever fully stop—“.

A hand on her mask stops her little rant “Alright! Alright! I get it, I love you too, thanks for taking me out tonight”.

“It’s my pleasure,” Rui grins, although unseen. It’s quiet for a moment before Rui notices the glint of hesitation in Tsukasa’s marigold eyes, but gets the answer for her worries quite quickly.

“I want to see your face…” and if it wasn’t obvious that Rui was weak for Tsukasa before, she obliges. Pulling off her mask and pulling back her hood, she then follows the current as Tsukasa pulls her in for a kiss.

Maybe it’s to make up for the teasing almost kiss on stage that happened.

Tsukasa’s lips are soft in a way that makes Rui always savor the feeling of her own against them. She maintains a certain look due to being an idol, yes, but Tsukasa has always gone the extra mile.

It also gave her an excuse to borrow Tsukasa’s chapstick under the guise of wanting to get better at maintaining her ‘idol glow’.

The kiss becomes perfect when she feels Tsukasa smile back, it's peaceful around them and Rui wouldn’t trade this moment for anything.

Tsukasa, too lost in the moment, doesn’t realize she loses her cap in the process of leaning in.

Big mistake.

Their peace and quiet is so disrupted by a phone call as they enter their apartment. Rui looks over Tsukasa’s shoulder to see who is calling her. The caller ID reads as Meito, one of the hard-working people involved in their management.

Tsukasa packs her shoes away before answering the call.

“Meito! To what do I owe the pleasure—“ Tsukasa starts speaking cheerfully before her eyes go wide, she pulls the phone away from her ear and taps the speaker icon, “Okay, you were right that Rui is with me, but I still don’t know why you sound so upset—“

“Open any social media app you own right now and tell me yourself,” Meito practically growls through the phone. Tsukasa looks at Rui expectantly as she pulls out her phone, one that has matching phone charms with her girlfriend, and clicks on Instagram.

A whole carousel of photos is the first recommended post on her explore page: all of Tsukasa dragging Rui in for a kiss. Some are closer, while others were clearly taken at the initial discovery of the couple. The next few follow the same trend, all with varying captions screaming about the pictures; most of the comments on these posts follow the same pattern.

tenmatsukasan1oshi - I am dead, descEased, fukin hallucinating?! RUIKASA CANON??

rui_ru - I used to DREAM about moments like these!!! On stage and now here??? I CAN DIE HAPPY

grapesodagamer - well, somebody is in big trouble

    ⤷ WANDAH0I21 - don’t say that :(((((((((((

eyes_of_an_invent0r - the world is healing ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

    ⤷ dum.side.stepper - a million other things need to happen before the world heals

       ⤷ tenmatsukasan1oshi - SYBAU 💔💔

Heck, even Touya had liked one of them, although she suspects the blue-haired idol probably did so without realizing it.

“Tsukasa-chan’s merch looks good on me,” comes the delayed response from Rui as Tsukasa starts screaming, nearly dropping her phone in favor of trying to turn off Rui’s.

Rui can definitely make this situation into something positive.

“Well, looks like our speculated relationship isn’t up for debate anymore! I am glad you’ll stop being shipped with Akito” she decides to shamelessly say, causing a nice shade of scarlet to appear on her girlfriend’s already flushed face “RUI WE WERE CAUGHT!”.

“I believe it is your fault for wanting to see my face~” Rui cheerfully adds on, causing a punch to her shoulder from Tsukasa, who’s scrambling to find any excuse to make to their manager.

“It doesn’t matter whose fault it is!” Meito interrupts them, “You’re both in trouble and have given a mountain of work to various people, including me”.

The lecture goes on for another few minutes, and after the idols’ apologies, Meito makes an exasperated sigh, “Just stay on the down low for now, especially when on stage and in public, until I give you two the go-ahead. Do I make myself clear?”.

Rui and Tsukasa just stare at each other silently, causing Meito to repeat himself a bit more forcefully “Do I make myself clear?!”.

“Yes Sir!”.

But Rui knows she’ll do it again; she’s always wanted to show Tsukasa off as hers to the world. Their little stints on stage and in interviews weren’t enough.

And based on Tsukasa’s knowing look, she knows her girlfriend realizes her intentions too. Although Tsukasa will go along with her whims and Rui knows it.

Chapter Text

Parks were places that bustled with energy, from kids chasing each other around to owners running alongside their dogs. The bird chirps and the sun shines bright on what seems to be the perfect day to play in the park.

But not for everyone.

A girl with short purple hair, accompanied by two teal streaks, sits by herself on the playground, too afraid to go introduce herself to the other kids. Usually, Rui had no problem with doing so, but school offered a different environment than this new playground in a different neighborhood. It made her feel a bit unsettled, but she knew she was here because of the errands her mom had to run today.

She couldn’t bring any of her inventions to any park or outside her playplaces, because of how fragile most of them were, and she knew she’d be heartbroken if they were destroyed by accident.

It sucks because she wants all her robotic friends to one day join her on stage.

While she thinks this, she looks at her mom typing stressfully on her phone, still close enough to keep an eye on Rui, but obviously not paying attention. Rui’s a good girl, so it’s not like she’ll run away, but she always feels safer when she can see her mom.

Her mom is probably attending to an email on her phone, and she told Rui to try and talk to the other kids, but today, all she is interested in is messing with the array of colorful bandages on her knees, hands, and arms.

She was able to bring her platypus plushie since it was crocheted, and Rui liked the way it felt in her hands. The touch was interesting to her and she liked the way it smelled of the nice laundry liquid the seldom times her mom had to wash the material.

It was the same feeling she’d get when she fell asleep on her dad when he wore his favorite knitted sweater, telling Rui off in a not at all serious way for trying to catch Santa.

She also thought of her plushie as her adorable companion, someone who wouldn’t leave her no matter what, so she brought him with her. It was to help ease her recent worries. The worry is mainly because she is worried about her friend Nene, whom she hasn’t been able to play with because he’s been sick. 

And when Nene is sick, he feels sad, which makes Rui sad because she wants to see him smile. So she decides to lean on the tree and look at the clouds. What could she do to make him smile, even if he was bedridden?

She had seen the weird looks she got when she went to the rocking horses on the playground, so she wasn’t even gonna attempt talking to anyone today; she could focus on what she wanted, even if the looks made her feel sad.

Rui had Mister Platypus and her mom said she could leave if she wasn’t having fun, but she would wait until her mom wasn’t busy. Yet when she is beginning to think of what she could do, a loud voice catches her attention.

“Hey!”.

A girl with blonde and peach hair that reached her shoulders is now sitting in front of her, she has two half-up twintails with star hair ties, and she’s smiling happily at Rui. She has a few loose curly strands of her hair falling on her face from how she ran over, or at least Rui thinks she did, because it was like she suddenly appeared.

She had a big blue sweater with a white bear on the side, which matched the bear bracelets on her arm. 

“Hello!” the girl repeats, waving excitedly with her plushie’s arm “Usa-chan says hi too!”. The plush is pink and worn with small bits of stuffing peaking out. She has two red ribbons with little heart icons in the middle, one on her chest and another on her ear.

Rui is scared for a second before shyly moving the crocheted arm back, making the blonde, starry girl even happier. When she doesn’t answer verbally, she gets asked another question “Usa-chan loves to sing to the flowers and join me on adventures! What does Mister Platypus do?”.

Rui freezes up at that, still confused about why this girl, who was shining so brightly for reasons she couldn’t grasp yet, and how she could know her plushie companion’s name. She looks friendly, but Rui can’t help but remember the prior week when the classmates she was doing shows with told her they didn’t want to anymore.

Because she was weird and dangerous.

“Why are you speaking to me? Those girls look nicer to play with,” Rui mumbles into her platypus, holding it tighter, but the blonde frowns at that “‘Cause those girls aren’t you? Why wouldn’t I talk to you?”.

“Because I am weird, no one stays to help with my shows, and some girls don’t play with me because I look like a boy,” Rui says plain and simple.

For the last point, her mom didn’t let her have long hair because of the machinery she fiddled with; she didn’t want an accident to happen to her daughter, but the other kids didn’t get that.

Also, Rui liked it more that way, less time in the bath cleaning hair meant more time to watch DVDs with Chi's Sweet Home on them! Or to watch her dad build robots on their dining room table, which they never ate dinner on because of all the parts.

“Hmm well, other kids are dummies!” the girl huffs with her hands on her hips, “But did you say shows? I love shows! I am making a show right now”. “It’s about travelling the stars! And while this plushie does belong to my brother, he is the main actor alongside me for when we go visit him!” she continues, visibly getting more excited since Rui was showing interest, at least with the way she looked at Usa.

“I make shows so he can smile no matter what, and one day we’ll be able to play our song at the huge HUGE piano in the living room!” she smiles happily and Rui joins her, “I want to make people smile with my shows too”.

Tsukasa gives her a big thumbs up before stretching out Usa's hand again “Anyway, what's your name? I’m Tsukasa!”.

“My name is Rui, hello Tsukasa-chan” Rui pushes out her platypus’s hand to bump Usa’s.

They stay silent for a moment, looking curiously at their plushies’ linked hands before Rui surprisingly speaks up, “We could tie Usa-chan to heart-shaped balloons, so when you go to your brother, Usa-chan is actually flying”.

Rui quickly slaps a hand on her mouth at her sudden suggestion, afraid Tsukasa will say something mean about her being too eager—

But Tsukasa’s eyes hold the entire glittering universe in them, practically vibrating with excitement “You could do that? We have to do it inside, otherwise Usa-chan gets to go to space for real before me! And I am a star, so I have to go first!”.

Rui tilts her head to the side “You’re a star?”.

It makes sense to Rui because of the stars in her hair.

“Of course, Princess Pegasus was blessed by the sun and she came down to earth to help everyone in need because she is kind and awesome sauce!” Tsukasa poses, even while sitting on her knees, “Usa-chan is Officer Rabbit, Princess Pegasus’s right-hand bunny, and they are going to start exploring the Milky Way together!”.

Rui also feels herself getting more excited as Tsukasa talks, the nervousness slipping away easily “What props do you have? I don’t think I can add onto a metal sword right now, but I could do something with a plastic sword, do space princesses have swords?”.

“I usually just make cardboard props, but I have a cape my mom made for me too!” Tsukasa answers, “And yes, space princesses have swords! I was going to look for one today!”.

Rui finally asks the last question she wants to ask: “How do you feel about robots in shows?”.

Tsukasa’s eager nodding is enough of an answer, so Rui hurriedly says, “I’ll bring them next time then! I’ll have to ask Mom first though…”.

The fact that she is already wishing for more time doesn’t register in her mind, but Tsukasa isn’t opposed to it either “In the meantime, help me find a stick, and then we’ll need to start planning our way to the Milky Way! It’s the next arc for Saki to witness my greatness!”.

“You’re coming to, Rui-chan! I don’t think you can come with me to see my little brother but you’re now in character in my show! I’ll tell Saki all about it” she announces, standing up triumphantly from her spot on the ground, and then uses all her strength to get Rui to stand up too.

They wobble a bit as Rui processes what Tsukasa just said to her, clearly shocked, “I am in the show?”.

“You’re silly, Rui-chan! Of course, you’re included in the show! Now let’s go!!!!” she’s loud, but Rui doesn’t mind. She doesn’t know why she suddenly was going to the Milky Way, but she doesn’t want to miss it for the world.

They brainstorm a name for Rui as they search for a stick that’ll be the perfect weapon for the princess, by the trees where their parents could still see them, and eventually find one on the edge of the playground.

They both ignore the stuffed gray rabbit that’s lying near one of the bushes; the eerie smile and yellow eyes put both of them off, even with its cute red bow tie. Rui hopes whoever left their plushie friend comes back for him.

Rui won’t ever forget Mister Platypus.

Tsukasa picks the stick up gleefully and swings it around “Perfect! Princess Pegasus is ready to go exploring with Officer Rabbit! And their new friends…?”. She looks expectantly at Rui, who brings her plushie close again, “Sire Flippers and the Alchemist!”.

“Alch-y-meist!” Tsukasa repeats, uncertain.

Rui smiles, “Neh, Tsukasa-chan, it’s Al-che-mist”.

Tsukasa huffs, “Alright then, the mighty Alchemist has joined in on a space adventure, let’s get started!”.

She feels Tsukasa’s fingers lock with her bandaged ones as she drags them to the slide, plushie companions in tow, before any other kid on the playground suddenly decides they want to go down right now.

Once she gets situated on the slide, Tsukasa launches into an interesting monologue that Rui, Mister Platypus, and Usa watch. Tsukasa happily waves the large stick around, proclaiming it as “thee Special Sky Legendary Pegasus sword” that had been blessed by her new best friend.

Tsukasa isn’t on the slide right now; she’s on the moon and she’s waving her sword with a magnificent flag flowing behind her. Their plushies are adorned with their own spacesuits on, and Rui stands in front of her, the new Alchemist who helped her get here.

The stars surround them with a multitude of colorful planets.

To bring a smile to a young boy.

And Rui can’t stop smiling; her cheeks hurt from not being able to stop.

“AH HA HA HA!” Tsukasa laughs loudly from her place on the tippy top of the slide, a full-on belly laugh, and Rui can’t help but join her with a smaller round of giggles. Right now, she is with Tsukasa and hopes that Nene can meet her soon.

She wants to perform a show with both of them; she thinks it will be as amazing as the Little Mermaid show she got to see with Nene.

Now, how can she convince her mom to let Tsukasa come over sometime without Tsukasa’s mother yelling stranger danger because they met at the park…

A woman with purple hair similar to Rui slowly walks over to a woman with light blonde hair who was watching the two kids. She’s sitting on a bench with an almost somber expression on her face, and when she catches her attention, she politely greets her and motions toward Rui and Tsukasa near the slide.

The purple-haired woman smiles, “Sorry for saying this out of the blue, but is the blonde girl with the cute pink bunny plush the one talking so animatedly to my daughter? They look like they’re having so much fun and you look so alike”.

“She is mine! By the way, I’m Tenma Kokomi, and my little girl’s name is Tsukasa,” the blonde woman says, “And your daughter?”. “Rui,” she replies, eyes still watching curiously at how quickly Rui was warming up to Tsukasa, “I’m Kamishiro Sumire. I came because of how quickly our kids have seemed to have clicked together, like puzzle pieces”.

Kokomi unclasps her hands from her lap, and she pats the space next to the bench. Sumire looks stunned for a second before happily taking a seat.

“Are you new around here, Kamishiro-san? I can’t say I’ve seen you before,” Kokomi asks, subtly leaving out the part that it had been a while since she had time to take Tsukasa to the park. She really needed to work on her schedule better and she was now enacting it.

“Well, we don’t live in the neighborhood, but we aren’t far,” Sumire hums before the two talk more on the bench. Before either of them knew it, another hour had passed and their kids were still playing together; Tsukasa was now proudly adorning a flower crown with an even larger stick that she’d surely try to bring into the hospital.

But when both moms looked at their daughters, they both had hope.

Kokomi hoped it worked out; Tsukasa definitely could benefit more from having friends her age and being free from her worry about her brother. She was still a kid, but a kid who deserved not to be burdened with worries only adults should handle.

Sumire hoped the same. While Rui clicked with Nene, the worries her daughter voiced about fitting in and making friends made her heart sick with sadness. Rui wasn’t alone, but she still felt lonely. Having wonderful friends who wouldn’t make her feel small for having a little more adventurous interests was more than welcome.

And now the two had organized a playdate for the two girls, all that was left was for them to hear the news.

“Kasa-chan, come over here, please!”.

“Rui! I’ve got great news for you, come quickly”.

The two reach their bench hand in hand, and it makes both mothers’ hearts swoon at how cute they are.

-----------------------------------------

One night, Rui is at her desk doing her repairs. Her darling machines had performed magnificently today and the praise she had gotten from her girlfriend was more than welcome. So she had to keep them in shape, to keep their magic alive.

She may only be in her first year, but she was still striving toward her dream in big strides, perhaps she’d even join a troupe soon, even though she was content with her guerilla shows and her occasional appearance alongside a certain someone.

Then, suddenly, but not enough to startle her, she feels a light weight on the back of her neck. It feels like it's made of soft material, and she can also make out a distinct button nose pressing on her skin.

She isn’t expecting to see button eyes, she remembered acting with him as a mere child.

“Usa-chan,” she says fondly, and directs an even fonder look at the girl holding the plushie in her hands. One of her dear childhood friends, alongside Nene, yet someone who had wormed her way even closer to the alchemist’s heart.

Playground crushes did exist, Rui just didn’t know it had been the first time they met, and that crush had turned into something more concrete.

When Tsukasa doesn’t elaborate, Rui turns back to the repairs she was in the middle of doing, but she feels a smack of a plush hand hit her shoulder almost immediately.

No words are spoken; it’s almost like Tsukasa wants her to guess her thoughts.

“Is Tsukasa-chan feeling specifically nostalgic today? Fufu, not that it is unwelcome. Our dear friend has travelled to universes and beyond. What does a trip to my house even compare to the places he’s fought valiantly?” Rui says, but still no response.

When she only turns her head around, she is met with Tsukasa and her unusually cheeky face. Usa in one hand, another hand sprawled out on her chest as she poses.

She’s never stopped posing, that habit from when she was a younger kid being persistent to this day. She’s also never lost her hairstyle, still sprouting her half-up twintails with their signature star ties, although sometimes the ties were replaced with white ribbons.

“Who is Tsukasa? I am Princess Pegasus! Mister Rabbit and I are on a mission to reunite with our dear companions, Sire Flippers and the Alchemist” Tsukasa starts her narrative “Say, you look really familiar… care to tell me your name? It’s rude to keep a princess waiting!”.

“I wonder who I am. Care to enlighten me, princess?” Rui teases and Tsukasa’s pout appears almost instantly “Maybe I should leave you stranded on this planet if you want to be unhelpful”.

Tsukasa isn’t the one who normally reverts to puppy dog eyes, yet here she is, doing just that.

“Well, if Princess Pegasus is going to fly away, then the Alchemist must follow. Then we can search for Sire Platypus high up in the sky” Rui places her tools to the side, making sure the electricity is off for the necessary equipment, before spinning her chair around and standing up.

She isn’t even given a moment to stretch before she feels the natural connection of their hands.

“To the Milky Way, my star?” Rui asks as she feels a tug dragging her toward her actual room in the house, likely where her plushie friend had been safely stored for years.

Tsukasa giggles endearingly, “And even further, my director!”.

Chapter Text

“A spade is often associated with nobility; it can symbolize wisdom and change, while a club is nothing but its fire and its will”.

Who had told her that?

A ball is in full swing; many esteemed guests dance elegantly to the music and engage in conversations that are relevant to their social status. Some have good intentions, others do not, and a flip of the coin has a higher probability of choosing a side.

The heir to the throne – Tenma Tsukasa – was the center of it all. Many wanted to talk to her, many wanted to get up close to admire her as she sipped a glass of champagne.

Dark blues were everywhere, her dress that drew the attention of many with its intricate details. Her corset and white ruffles add more; the cuffs are white with golden lines represents her royal status. The spade decoration is pinned securely to her chest.

Her peach hues were all over the place due to her double-braided updo. The loose strands left had been tucked in to form a bun, and the real focus was the shining crown atop her head, despite not being queen yet.

Tsukasa held her head up high, back straightened, hands clasped in front of her. She looked ethereal to those around her, yet she only wanted to look stunning to one person.

Most words are meaningless bragging that goes in one ear and out the other. It’s gibberish, she reminds the time a certain aristocrat brought up a good point:

“Does attaching something to a nonsensical phrase give it meaning? Give it purpose?”.

Tsukasa was the heir to the throne, so if she showed any more emotion than necessary, that would be cowardly. She was welcoming to her subjects and the supporters who genuinely supported her dream of bringing smiles to the world to heal the pain.

But to the suitors, she simply remained cordial. Nothing further, nothing for them to think she was interested in them and their boring stories they tell in order to impress her. And then there were the old townsfolk, causing a fuss over Tsukasa taking on bigger roles than the male heir.

Maybe that’s why her parents want her to get married and rule the kingdom with someone by her side. She has her own thoughts, surely? That’s why she sings her own song to a version of herself she doesn’t show to many people.

She holds a sharpened blade, even if only in her mind, to protect herself from the high tension that has come off recently. She hopes that her parents will be kind enough not to put her into an arranged marriage, but she knows more than anyone that desperate times will make people do desperate things.

Suck in the emotions, suck it in with disgust, but she can't spit it out in fear of offending the wrong people and causing innocent people to suffer. She knows people would be disgusted by her capriciousness because she wouldn’t live up to their unrealistic standards.

Is she disgusted by her emotions? Can she do without them? There is no right answer. She can’t, it just depends on the situation, which is why once she finally spots the most beautiful woman in the crowd, her heartbeat speeds up.

The purple hair ignites a spark in her; it’s Rui! And she’s giving her the hand signal.

The back of her hair is separated in the middle to make two low pigtails, each loosened at the top to create a little more volume. The two teal streaks were straightened out like the rest of her hair, and the bangs that covered the tops of her eyes somehow made it look like Rui was unpredictable.

Well, she was. But not as a threat to the kingdom, most certainly not.

An aristocrat trying to dress as regal as royals usually would have been noticed immediately, yet somehow no one cares when it's Rui. She was everything a respectable aristocrat was, yet her oddities made her stand out.

Tsukasa doesn’t typically focus on her outfit as a whole either, just the little details like the light makeup on Rui’s face, aside from her iconic red eyeliner.

The club was attached to seemingly cape-like fabric that was on one of her shoulders; a blend of purple and turquoise with little tassels. She had a matching earring with Tsukasa of her own card, and on her head was a crown that wasn’t used for royalty, yet still showed her status.

But more importantly, it was the hand signal, the position of fingers directed so that Tsukasa could easily see it. When she catches those treasured amber eyes, Rui winks before making her exit.

It, unfortunately and annoyingly, takes Tsukasa to escape the ball without her parents noticing. When she is finally away from the frankly overstimulating blurries of noise, she lets out a sigh of relief and makes her way to the part of the main garden people rarely go to. It had an aging white gazebo that was on the larger side, and still had well-maintained flowers growing around it. There were faint lights that were across the whole garden, so Tsukasa didn't step on her dress trying to get to the gazebo in the first place.

She’d say it was a shame, but then again, if more people knew about this spot, she wouldn’t be able to have moments with just her and Rui alone.

Thump, Thump.

“A midday rendezvous at night,” Rui says, appearing behind Tsukasa so fast she wonders if she had materialzsed out of thin air. She half expects her to say bibbidi-babbide-boo as she goes in front of her. It’s a magical phrase from a children's book, as if when Rui says it, Tsukasa is whisked away to a world that is only theirs; no one else can view their sanctuary.

So they talk and talk and talk, allowing Tsukasa to relax after the rough night and make her dread having to go back. Time with Rui does that to her; spending time with her filled her heart with love, but when she left, it was filled with loneliness instead.

At one point, the purple-haired aristocrat stands up, turns around, and offers her hand to a sitting princess.

“Shall we dance?” Rui asks and Tsukasa silently wonders if her heart speeding up was a sign of how emotions could be weak “Is that what you called me out here for?”

“I could tell your heart had fallen ill from the monotony and quite boring atmosphere the party offered. Fufu, I wouldn’t have been surprised if you had keeled over from the boredom. But it isn’t your time yet, so here is my solution,” and with that, Tsukasa takes Rui’s outstretched hand, much to her pleasure.

One hand ends up gripping her hip firmly, fingers first brushing over ruffles from her overskirt, while Tsukasa’s own grips her shoulder tighter.

It’s like they begin to glide across the gazebo in sync.

They keep eye contact the whole time, Tsukasa’s smile becoming more endearing to the other as time passes, and she starts humming a tune to accompany them.

When Rui steps forward with her left foot, Tsukasa steps back with her right foot, and so on. They sped up, they slowed down, neither following a set tempo.

It's much more freeing than dancing in a room where everyone is watching; if Tsukasa stumbles in her heels, she doesn’t have to worry about being maliciously laughed at.

“We will become idiots, dancing on air,” Rui begins to sing to add onto this imaginary tune of her own “Forget about the present, rat-tat-tat”. She hears a jingle from the hip jewellery over her white pants, gold in color except for the bright turquoise clubs hanging from them.

“What does rat-tat-tat mean?” she questions, but the aristocrat offers no chance for interruptions in her song.

“Let’s just dance,” Rui continues singing wonderfully, “Light up the night and forget about the tears we’ve shed on the most tragic of days”. Tsukasa lets her continue to lead their dance, enamoured by Rui herself, enchanted by her voice, with the song that’s utter nonsense but resonates with her so well.

Rui has transported her to a world Tsukasa begs to be a part of, a world where absolutely nothing makes sense and that’s painted in a plethora of colors that appear on a monochrome scale.

Black, white, yet the purple Rui encompasses is still present in the midst of it.

Tsukasa is so utterly entranced, nothing around them makes sense, but she wants to escape to this unknown world with Rui by her side, run away from all her responsibilities and all the expectations, so she can just act on impulse instead of logic.

Rui turns strangeness into art, even if the masses do not comprehend what she makes. Tsukasa desperately wants to be a part of it.

“To not tell any lies or slips of the tongue, to the me that's not me, rat-tat-tat” Rui supports her shoulders and her back as she proceeds to dip Tsukasa, a bent knee already in place as she keeps singing “Even on the most melancholy of days…”.

She trails off before pressing a soft kiss on Tsukasa’s lips, staying for a bit longer than necessary, but Tsukasa doesn’t complain until she pulls back. She feels Rui’s ponytails brush her sides as she places a firmer grip on their position. Tsukasa’s arms tighten in their new spot around her neck.

“I want to reveal myself, as long as it's just you and I” she whispers against Tsukasa’s still parted lips. The blonde anticipates another, but a clock loudly rings out, dragging them both back to their mundane reality filled with problems.

Rui pushes her away gently, and Tsukasa lets out a loud whine before pawing at the cape on her shoulder “Don’t deprive me of this… you’re being a total heathen to me right now!”. Heathen is a stretch, but Tsukasa doesn’t care.

She doesn’t want to go back; she needs to feel like she’s escaped.

“Don’t make this harder, my shining star,” Rui says, “Surely the princess knows better and can put her heart aside for the next hour”. Tsukasa pouts, trying to use her cuteness as a weapon against Rui, but it doesn’t work “Fufu, don’t make this harder, Tsukasa-sama”.

She gets a swat on the arm for that and Rui takes her arm to bring her close one more time, pressing a kiss to the side of her head and fixing her crown “I may swing around later, so farewell for now”.

The moment faded away faster than Tsukasa had liked, even if it had been over an hour since she had left the banquet hall.

Her heels click louder than she would have liked as she makes her way back down the hall. Turning on a persona to ensure no one would know she was tired, that she wanted to run away.

Rui hasn’t slipped back in yet, so Tsukasa doesn’t have any reason to try and look super pretty. The moment has gone, and she isn’t sure she will come back. What had Rui even meant to imply before?

It’s back to being cowardly as her heart pounds with a false sense of virtue, as many more suitors come to try and entertain her. She had the sense of virtue for her kingdom, for the people that needed her, not people that wanted an easy way to climb the hierarchy while sweet talking her parents.

She wanted to just go back to her room and wind down now, but instead, she waved at everyone who looked in her direction.

-----------------------------------------

Alone in her room, away from reality. Tsukasa attempts to gain her energy back, not from dancing with her secret lover, but rather from having to keep up appearances. She was a bit more tired than she had acknowledged; it seemed any tint of it had left her for the brief time she got to spend with Rui.

She loves the kingdom, but she adamantly knows that she doesn’t need a husband to oversee everything with her.

A wife was a different story, but she’s never heard of a kingdom being led by two queens. She is also aware that an aristocrat has her own duties, and she’s never heard of an aristocrat gaining royalty status either.

Well, Rui was certainly eccentric enough to make history.

As she thinks this, Tsukasa sits in the chair to her vanity, brush in hand, yet she doesn’t move. She is dressed in anything elaborate like before; just a simple white nightdress with lacy long sleeves and ruffles, her hair let loose but tangled.

She sighs before she’s showing more emotion than she needs to again…. but gosh she is already missing Rui. Perhaps it’s from the dread of informing her parents that no suitor they picked out had stood out to her.

Pricks, the lot of them. 

They deserve Tsukasa’s love, only a particular mischievous aristocrat did. Even if after they hurt each other, the distance they had to deal with was a big enough testament to this.

Letters she sent with sprits of her perfume; hidden letters in lemon juice to avoid the messages she wanted only Rui to read.

The hidden messages of kissing her senseless without any regard to the time were words only Rui wanted her to read too. Really, she can be so forward in writing as well, but Tsukasa didn’t mind.

Then she hears a series of knocks on her window, she turns quite abruptly to see a purple-haired girl with her hand curled, giving her an all-knowing smirk as Tsukasa scrambles to open the latch.

She wears the same style of nightgown Tsukasa adorns, except hers is a gray variant. She’s kept her hair in the hairstyle she wore earlier in the evening, and Tsukasa thinks the moonlight makes her positively ethereal.

Perhaps in the same way, Rui says the sunlight complements her perfectly.

“How on earth did you get on the balcony, you lunatic?” Tsukasa huffs but lets Rui fall into her arms regardless. Rui eagerly returns the hug, encircling her waist nice and snug “I have my ways”.

“Do you like my rat-tat-tat?” Rui asks once they part, and Tsukasa frowns, “Is that what it means?”.

“Nope!” she happily answers, “You shouldn’t try to make sense of things that don’t make sense!”. Tsukasa pouts, but she decides not to try and understand Rui’s attempts at undermining the rules of language.

Making sense of how Rui managed to get on her balcony was also something she shouldn’t think too much about, either. Rui and her family were allowed to stay in the palace among others who attended the ball, like the Aoyagis and the Asahinas, because of their loyalty and status within the kingdom. But Rui shouldn’t have had access in the first place. How was she not caught?

Rui eyes the brush as Tsukasa thinks, before eyeing the blonde and peach hair “Hmm, my star, let me help you”. Tsukasa offers no objections and goes back to her seat, passing the brush to Rui’s waiting hands. In response, she feels a gentle kiss placed atop her head.

Although she likes to imagine that Rui would say she brings light to the night, even as she even ponders what her future holds. The way the aristocrat treats her with such care makes her heart swoon, makes her want to hold hope in becoming a ruler who makes the people smile for the kingdom’s prosperity.

Rui’s singing again as she starts combing a few inches from the bottom, prioritizing smoothing the parts that were braided. “To the me that's not me, rat-tat-tat” Rui hums as she continues to use slow strokes to untangle any remaining knots, moving slowly upwards to the root in small movements.

Rui sings lyrics that don’t match the previous ones; it’s all illogical, but perhaps that’s what makes the melody so charming. When she was with Rui, she was okay being cowardly; she was okay indulging in the fluttery feeling she got in her stomach.

When Rui announces she is done, Tsukasa stares.

She stares and stares and stares before letting a few of her worries slip from her mouth, her cowardly emotions.

It’s her last weapon, her last safety net “I just don’t know”. She stands up from the seat to turn to Rui, trying to gauge her full reaction to the whole night, if she wants to retreat to her room or not.

“Tsukasa-chan is now saying utter nonsense,” she says with scorn before laughing, “But I am glad you’re so comfortable with me, am I that special to one of the Tenma royals?”.

She’s on the verge of losing composure and wants to just forget everything except their world right now, forget all her duties and responsibilities.

“Ugh, just get in the bed and cuddle with me, woman!” Tsukasa begins to tug her to the bed.

Rui chuckles again while Tsukasa topples with her onto the bed, “My my so bossy~”.

There’s no sleep for them; they’ll continue talking deep into the night till Rui has to sneak out again. The tears that she shed out of frustration from such insignificant situations are nowhere in sight as she tries to get Rui to sit still so she can comb her hair to return to the favor once she realizes she had kept her hair in to sleep.

(She wondered what their lives could be like if they were reborn in a world that truly was theirs. Tsukasa just wants to forget about the present when she’s with her beloved).

Chapter Text

Tsukasa wasn’t the one who made everyone’s costumes, but she was the one who could best repair any mishaps that happened with them. Mizuki was also a reliable friend for this, but Tsukasa doesn’t want to bother the girl when she’s busy, even when it's something a bit out of pocket.

Like a tear from an explosion, courtesy of one Ootori Emu.

She’s never even thought to entertain the idea that Rui would ever actually launch someone out of a cannon, but Tsukasa supposes it’s her own fault for placing that amount of faith in her girlfriend.

It seems even Emu isn’t immune to Rui’s silver tongue, not that their pink-haired friend needed much convincing in the first place to go along with her out-of-the-ordinary ideas. If Emu saw the chance to make a show more entertaining, especially if that idea involved stunts to test his acrobatic ability, he’d take it straight on.

One day, Tsukasa'd like to design new outfits for everyone in the troupe, and she’ll find fabric that is resistant to explosion burns, if that even exists.

Maybe she could manifest such a thing in the sekai and see if she could take it back to the real world….

Regardless of such a thing, Tsukasa has also decided to check on Nene and Rui’s costumes for any maintenance she can enact for them! She had managed to check Nene’s prior to their practice and she thanks him for having the sensibility to not do anything reckless.

Emu’s outfit was all fixed up before practice and Tsukasa had stored her outfit elements safely in her locker already. Right now, she had let her hair loose, only wearing her undershirt and her black, poofy skirt with a multitude of white frills.

Rui, on the other hand, had been wearing her coat throughout the entire practice and hung it up for her to inspect in the changing room. She had planned to stay, but Emu called her back out to help him with listing the necessary stage renovations.

Last week, there was an instance with broken chairs, thankfully not during a performance, and Tsukasa’s butt was still sore from how badly she had flung from the seat to the ground “Agh! that was so embarrassing, but let’s get back to Rui’s coat. She has an extra vest and extra ribbons here too but they look fine…”.

First, she checks the pockets and isn’t surprised in the slightest to feel various metal scraps and see a comically large red button that looks like it came straight out of a cartoon.

She hopes that whatever it activates, Rui doesn’t try to use the school grounds to test it; she’s going to try for the school disciplinary committee next year and another detention won’t make that impossible!

When she stops assessing for damages, she really takes the time to just admire Rui’s outfit, like her spare black vest and spare yellow ribbon she had left lying about.

“It looks a lot bigger than when Rui wears it”.

Her overcoat was adorned with pinks and purples and yellow splotches, a chequered yellow design on the inside of the coat, and her cuffed sleeves had the white frills that matched the ends of her coat as well.

Typically, or rather on its own, the coat seemed like an eyesore, but when Rui wore it she made it work.

And Tsukasa isn’t just attesting to that because her gaze always wanders to Rui when the troupe takes their final bow, admiring the way she, alongside everyone else, shone in the stage light. Sweaty or not, she always looked like she was having fun.

“I wonder what it would be like to put it on,” she suddenly thinks, and instead of letting that thought stay in passing, she reaches to pull the coat off its hanger.

Tsukasa, now with a bundle of fabric in her arms since she took the vest and yellow ribbon as well, stands in front of the mirror and gets to work.

“This is really impulsive,” she mutters out loud.

It was bigger on her shoulders and the front of the coat is a little tighter on her chest than on Rui, but otherwise it was a comfy fit. She pulls at the cuffs but decides to leave the sleeves be, just really looking at how she appears in the mirror.

“Oh!”.

The wavy peach ends of her hair stand out against the more neon-like yellow; the cuffs weren’t rolled up so she could only see the tips of her fingers, and she can see the new blush standing out quite obviously.

She really really likes the way it looks on her, for reasons she didn’t even know how to explain, and lets herself express that joy by squealing like a young schoolgirl into the sleeves of the coat.

The coat just feels too darn comfortable! And now she is considering swapping out her signature white bow for a pale yellow sometimes.

Once she supposedly gets all those jitters out of her system, she knows she should take the coat, vest, and ribbon off. Yet she doesn’t.

Instead, Tsukasa looks in the mirror and closes her eyes, opening them once she has a feline smile gracing her lips “Ya, Tsukasa-chan~ Won’t you join me on the rooftop for an experiment?”. She places her drowned hand on her chest “Yoyoyo, give me a chance, or do you not trust your girlfriend shiku shiku…”.

She giggles at her impersonation and decides to continue, as it reminds her of when Nene imitated her, Emu, and Rui on the Sekai Live they hosted.

Even if being Magical Girl Pegasus had persisted since then, not that Tsukasa minded, but Nene’s imitation of her voice could have been better! She was not that high-pitched, thank you very much!

When she places a hand on her cheek to mimic Rui once again, she pauses, suddenly recalling when Rui would place her white gloved hands on her cheeks to kiss her, place a hand under her chin to get her to look at her…

Her blush is evident and it surely must be just her tired mind deciding not to be on her side, but her hand doesn’t leave her face and she stays in the warm coat.

Big mistake, Tsukasa had only done this because she thought Rui would be busy, because she would take it off before she came back—

But, lo and behold, her girlfriend was standing in the changing room doorway with no coat to finish her outfit. When she was like this, her hair was more prominent on her shoulders, the longer ends that mimicked a jellyfish stood out against the black and the yellow ribbon as well. And while Tsukasa can admit that Rui looked good without it, especially with the way that her black vest gave an air of elegance, she didn’t want to see her this instant!

“Tsukasa-chan?” Rui slowly walks into the changing room, the door slipping shut, and a tentative flush appears on her face.

Meanwhile, Tsukasa is blazing scarlet “RUI! Ahaha, what are you doing here? Are you done with Emu and Nene already?”.

“It’s been 10 minutes, we were all surprised you didn’t come join us again,” Rui continues, ignoring Tsukasa’s clear attempt to divert the attention away from her “I must say, your impressions are quite spot on”.

“Although you make it ten times more adorable, my star,” she adds on, as if to rub salt in the wound, “I am cool! And doing that doesn’t make me cute like you claim”. When Rui is closer to her, Tsukasa scrunches her eyes shut as if it will protect her from her director; she isn’t sure from what, but she does the action regardless.

This allows Rui to slip her arms under her coat and around Tsukasa’s waist. Now, she is positive that the tips of her ears are burning red too. 

Rui doesn’t tend to generate a lot of body heat, so having her feel so cozy against her was a welcome surprise, and she decides not to cause a fuss because of how embarrassed she was to have been caught. She isn’t feeling completely off guard, however, since she was weak and in love with Rui.

She wants to be with her all the time, so she just accepts this moment as it is. She doesn’t have anything to complain about anyway.

Marigold eyes begin to stare into golden ones almost expectantly.

“Fufu, it’s like the boyfriend shirt phenomenon, except it’s a girlfriend coat,” Rui comments, finally bringing Tsukasa somehow closer so the blonde can get the boost to put her arms around Rui as well, “And I can certainly see the appeal of it. You can borrow my coat whenever you like~”.

It seems that Rui was focused on the coat rather than the fact that Tsukasa is also wearing her extra ribbon and extra vest.  

“You’re shameless, incorrigible, and almost predictable,” Tsukasa grumbles, “But I’ll admit the coat is very comfortable, Mizuki did an excellent job and you should always make sure it’s in the best possible condition”.

“But you’ll fix any accidents regardless,” Rui gleefully reminds her and Tsukasa sighs before reaching her hands to grab Rui’s cheeks. Even as the girlfriend is forced to look directly at her, she offers no shame but rather hints of amusement. Rui looks at her as if she is challenging Tsukasa to admit something, so Tsukasa just takes the leap before it grows endlessly.

“… I may take you up on your previous offer,” Tsukasa murmurs, naturally leaning into Rui. “Fufu, so cute, Tsukasa-chan,” Rui breathes out, words practically ghosting Tsukasa’s cheery lips, so the star does them both a favor and connects them.

It’s soft and sweet, and not just because of the berry mix chapstick Tsukasa decided to wear today. She would have expected Rui to tease her even more, but it seems that she really likes seeing Tsukasa in her outfit.

The secure grip on her hips and the arms snuggly wrapped in her coat just confirm it, it’s like Rui doesn’t want to move. Tsukasa easily concludes that Rui was the cute one here. However, she lets their lips unlock when Tsukasa shakes her body to get the sneaky hand that tried to slip under the hem of her shirt.

The best part is that Rui doesn’t say anything when Tsukasa offers a half-hearted glare her way; she just lets the moment be.

Tsukasa’s heart picks up again when Rui leans in again, making sure her hands are kept secure with their place on her director’s warm cheeks, when a loud gasp interrupts the atmosphere.

A loud shushing follows, but by then the two had become as frozen as statues. The jingle from Emu’s costume gives him away even before he pokes his head in. Nene follows suit, but he looks more flustered at having caught Tsukasa and Rui being so– “WAH! LOVEY DOVEY KIRA KIRA YURI MOMENT!”.

“Yuri?” Tsukasa questions, trying to subtly hide behind Rui and peer at the two boys over the director’s shoulder. Rui laughs, “Looks like someone has been reading too many GL light novels”.

Emu nods quickly before backtracking, “Wait! I am so sorry, Rui-chan, I wanted to ask you one more teeny tiny question and now I’ve forgotten! I didn't mean to interrupt your smooching time with Tsukasa-chan!”. He dramatically pulls the sides of his hair to further emphasize this.

“Smooching time?” Tsukasa stutters out, “Wait, how much did you see?!”.

Nene’s head is hidden in his hands, white pom poms on his cuffs hiding parts of her eyes “I didn’t mean to look either… I don’t wanna see my childhood friend finally getting lucky with a girl wearing her coat, your acts at school are enough for me”.

“Don’t make it sound so scandalous, Nene! Being in love is not a crime!” Tsukasa retorts as Nene drops his hands and rolls his eyes, “But blowing up buildings is. Typically they coincide with you and Rui”.

Tsukasa, once again, tries to argue back, but Emu interrupts them, “Aw, no fair! I can’t see any moments because I am at a different school, and Tsukasa-chan is a meanie who’ll report me! Love is so wonderful, I am so so jealous that Nene-kun can see it first hand…”.

“Hmm, I would be willing to recreate our little moments for you to see, that’s a good idea, Emu-kun” Rui grins, agreeing with their maniacal pink-haired friend, “It’s great practice for a romance storyline~”.

“WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU TWO?!” Tsukasa squeaks and Emu instantly knows what to say, “A LOT OF THINGS! WONDERHOY ☆”.

“Mister Emu,” a new voice joins the crowd, resulting in Tsukasa screaming about the sudden appearance of Miss Mascot in the changing room. The mascot promptly ignores Tsukasa’s squabbling and Rui’s continued holding of her to directly speak to Emu “You wanted me to inform you about when your sisters were leaving the premises, which is currently happening, so now would be the opportune moment to catch them”.

“Oh! We must be there post haste, I said I’d bring our plans for stage renovations as soon as possible,” he then giggles to himself, “Look at me, I am using such big worded phrases like that! Now let’s go, Nene-kun!”.

Nene is grabbed so suddenly that Tsukasa catches a glimpse of his startled face before hearing hurried footsteps.

After confirming the boys had made their quick exit, the mascot turned her head to face the young couple. The dog's head looked up and down before doing what looked like a nod. “Congratulations on your relationship, Miss Rui, Miss Tsukasa” and then she leaves as well.

“What just happened?” Tsukasa asks, still unsure of what had just transpired in front of them. Rui hums thoughtfully, thumbs beginning to rub circles absentmindedly in Tsukasa’s hips, “Maybe we don’t need to know”.

The movement is comforting to Tsukasa, but only for a moment as she realizes that they had stayed like this for the entire conversation! She’s beyond embarrassed and begins to babble out non-cohesive sentences.

Eventually, the embarrassment wins over all emotion and she buries her face in Rui’s sternum. She needs to hide, and while the coat does a pretty swell job, Rui herself was also a good shield.

Rui doesn’t try to tease her anymore, instead slipping a hand out of her coat and letting it come to pat Tsukasa on the head. In response, Tsukasa just grumbles and brings them closer.

She’s never trying on Rui’s coat ever again!

(But that’s a lie).

Chapter Text

A group of idols that rose amongst the charts, building a fanbase who cared about the music they produced, music that didn’t seem hollow in today’s day and age. They were a group of 6 but they didn’t perform together all the time, duos and trios and solo performances weren’t uncommon.

But the idol that shines the most brilliantly on stage, the apple of many peoples’ eyes was Tenma Tsukasa. As if the glowing beacon that shines on her is from the idol herself, not the stage lights.

The weight of the mic in her hand always feels right.

Blonde hair messily layered into a medium length cut, fading into a peach hue, her fringe parted in the middle with a pure white clip on boy. Her most famous white sweater with its cuffs and breast pocket lining a burst of randomly blended hues that matched her nail polish, star earrings that jingled when she moved on stage. The list of how she presented herself could go on forever.

But she wasn’t all about her image of a pretty idol — tonight she had performed solo, helping debut a new album she worked hard on. She didn’t want there to be no message, to just be regarded as a catchy tune filled with vanity, she was better than that.

She wanted to be better, especially since she was close to a leader of a group of activists trying to change the world's view on soulless music. Well, that seemingly harmless vigilante and another member of her idol group called Kanade gave her the push she needed.

What was the point if it was all to make a quick buck? That’s what Tsukasa wanted to communicate to her fans, songs were not just for fame and money. Kanade was in a similar vein; he wanted his music and his songs to save people.

The world could be quite cruel to those who have ambitions, especially with the rise of AI investments that were utterly distasteful and harmful to those who cared about music. What happened to the things people wanted to sing out from their hearts?

That’s why Tsukasa was never going to give up; that’s part of the reason she puts effort into more than just her concerts. Like how she’s been doing handshake events more frequently, happy to see fans that haven’t given in and become mindless content-consuming drones.

Each is greeted with a smile, and each is allowed to make the most of the brief time they have together. As long as they weren’t rude and outright offensive to her or other fans, she was happy for such an event.

She wasn’t immune to the creeps of the world, but that was what security and Kohane’s vague threats online from an anonymous account were for! Plus, Tsukasa did have the knowledge to defend herself; she could throw a mean punch. That’s also why she didn’t accept suspicious gifts, she wasn’t stupid.

Being an idol could be hard work, but Tsukasa had the motivation to maximise her opportunities “Please continue to lend me your support!”.

However, Tsukasa can’t lie, she was hoping a certain someone was going to appear in the line. Thankfully, she can suppress that sadness and longing; an idol mustn't let her whole demeanour shift for one person, even if that person happened to be of girlfriend status.

Then, as the last of the fans begin to walk out, a newcomer in a hood approaches the table. Instantly, Tsukasa is on guard, but a certain visible bracelet makes her pause. She is practically marching toward the table and no one seems to have noticed. She thinks about asking if she can help this person but the words don’t leave her lips.

“Is that who I think it is?” she thinks before barely registering familiar hands picking her up bridal style and beginning to run away from the guards who failed to notice how close a potential threat had gotten to the idol. She hears shouting as her view is basically turned upside down, the person clearly trying to find an exit while keeping a good grip on her.

The look of shock on her face as she tightens her arms around who she thinks it is, is enough to get a chuckle out of the kidnapper. She should be more concerned, but this turn of excitement gets her blood pumping.

She knows she is weird for that, but when has someone like she, the great Tenma Tsukasa, ever cared about how others perceive her eccentricities?

“Hold on tight” is all the warning she gets before she clings for dear life to the lunatic who jumped out the window of the very tall building and onto another roof. The lights blur around her and she acknowledges that some phones do flash their way, but doesn’t put much thought into it.

The wind is rushing by her ears and her fringe is in a disarray. The city could be so beautifully illuminated at night.

All this feels strangely familiar despite the fact she’s never been in such a situation before; perhaps it’s because she has a strong inclination to who's running away with her “AAAAAGGHHHH!”.

The golden eyes just reinforce everything, oh, how she had missed seeing these eyes on her from the crowd, missed them making her feel like the only living person left on earth.

Tsukasa still screams to keep up the act, and does so rather genuinely when the kidnapper swings with her on a grappling hook to get to ledges she couldn’t jump to as easily.

She then dares to laugh after she stops running, presumably at their final destination, causing Tsukasa to laugh as well and she is finally placed down onto the roof. She doesn’t try to separate her arms until she gets a tug on them, deciding to detach them by moving her hands to her shoulders, still standing close.

“Rui!” Tsukasa retains the beam she has even as she unhoods her kidnapper. She doesn’t feel like she’s in danger. Why should she hold any reservations? She isn’t stopped when the fabric falls from her hand.

A masked woman stares at her kindly, eyes crinkling as she feels a kiss pressed to her nose. Her short violet hair that didn’t even reach the back of her neck with its teal streaks and fades greeted her. The outfit she wore was not one Tsukasa had seen before and she figured that was better in case someone had snapped a photo of her being hoisted away.

But that wasn’t the important thing right now: Rui was back! It’s been months of no contact, no stalking appearances, and no midnight rendezvous. All because she had to go undercover, Tsukasa was allowed to say that she missed her so much her heart ached.

Absence does make the heart grow fonder, and Tsukasa was nothing but impatient.

“Fufu, hello Tsukasa-chan~ How did you figure it out?” Rui says, no hint of surprise about Tsukasa catching on. The vigilante likes to feel as if she were the one who knows her best.

“I just know~” the idol cheekily answers, awaiting the praise that will surely come because Rui loved to provide it to someone she deemed worthy in this terrible world.

Even if Tsukasa briefly forgot, briefly became so desperately selfish to stay viral, Rui stopped her before she did something so brash.

Kamishiro Rui leads the charge of restoring the world, and all Tsukasa can do is cheer her on. The same leader who’s now pulling her to the ground so Tsukasa can slide into her lap, the same ruthless soul who's leaning into the idol as she wraps her arms around her figure.

Much like how Rui cheers her on when she’s figured in the crowd, the brightest golden lightsticks among the crowd of proclaimed super fans.

Rui was her #3 fan of course; Saki and Touya were always in her top 2 spots. But Rui definitely could make it to the most concerts, which still surprised Tsukasa since most other idols in the industry just did it for the burst of virality they could get; their fifteen minutes of fame.

Rui had told her she was different the first time she saved her, but recounting that story was for another day.

Right now she soaks in the much missed physical affection, watching Rui nearly purr as she rubs her back, manicured nails sometimes scratching lightly. Rui encourages her to keep going but hasn’t taken her mask off, so Tsukasa has a feeling she’s hiding something she doesn’t want to talk about yet.

She finds that tonight is just for making up missed time, and if it were truly urgent Rui wouldn’t have made a spectacle of picking her up. Minutes pass without either of them saying anything.

“Why did you bring me up on a secluded rooftop?” she questions, noting that Rui looked like she wanted to fall asleep “I missed you… and maybe I just wanted to snag a kiss later on”. Rui props her knees up so Tsukasa slides closer. She can understand why; she was the prettiest idol in the game, Rui can’t help but want to hug her tightly.

Tsukasa just really wants to kiss her too, littering her mask with lipstick marks was fun in itself, but she craves to cup scared cheeks and perhaps get a deep kiss.

Absentmindedly, her hands move toward the bottom of Rui’s back as the vigilante tucks her head into the idol’s neck. The mask unlatches from Rui’s face from the purple-haired woman’s own violation, so Tsukasa wonders if she is going to mention anything about her mission.

Tsukasa stills when she hears the faint whimper at a spot her hand graces. Rui hasn’t noticed she had noticed so she does the motion again, feeling the recoil better this time. Tsukasa shifts her weight as Rui moves her hands behind herself to lean back.

“Are you going to tell me what’s this about?” she questions, trying to find any opening to try to find what caused Rui to wince. A gloved hand stops her, letting her catch a glimpse of Rui’s harsh face.

Tsukasa isn’t concerned about looks right now, even though Rui was painstakingly beautiful no matter what scars she carried, she’s more concerned about if Rui is at risk of bleeding out from this mystery injury. “I can’t tell you anything, it’ll put you in danger” Rui admits, causing Tsukasa to pout “I have been on assassination target lists, but I’ll respect that… just how badly were you injured?”.

She’ll never know what happened, where Rui went, what she accomplished, but she needs to know if Rui was hurt. And seeing that she was injured makes Tsukasa sick to her stomach.

How was Rui able to carry her across half the city without any flare ups in pain?!

“Does it hurt? How could you be so reckless? I worry about you, you know!” Tsukasa says once she puts the part of the outfit she had lifted back down, “I know you worry, but there is nothing to be done. I am going to make the world smile truly once again, even if it's risky”.

“How can I prove anything to you?” Tsukasa mumbles begrudgingly, tracing Rui’s jaw in one hand, “I just want you to be safe…”

“Kiss me then”, it’s said with a dead-serious tone, “While you speak, then I’ll listen”.

Rui clearly isn’t taking her injury seriously, but the scar looked like it had begun healing.

“You’re incorrigible, Kamishiro Rui” Tsukasa huffs, pouting her lips even as Rui tries to tug her impossibly closer again, a brief kiss placed on a pulse point.

A silent confirmation.

“And you indulge me” Rui hums back, but eagerly awaits what’s to come, as if Tsukasa wasn’t trying to scold her for hiding things moments ago. The blonde gives in to her whims so this oversized cat disguised as a human listens to her properly.

“You’re beautiful and courageous. As an idol that’s written songs about showcasing these attributes no matter what, I can confidently say you fit the bill” a kiss is placed on her scar-filled cheek.

“I want to wake up every day with the reassurance you’re alive, even if your job is sometimes dangerous” another kiss under her eyelid.

One on the tip of her nose, “I want you to live for your goal but also live with your life in mind. Your goals will fade if you disappear, you’ll have regrets”. 

“I want you to know that you don’t have to hide your weakness, your injuries, from me of all people. Just because I can be a bit of a brat doesn’t mean I don’t care about you” there are faint lipstick marks all over her face at that point, but Rui doesn’t mind in the slightest, melting into Tsukasa’s embrace.

She finally pulls away to press their foreheads together, really looking into those golden eyes “You know me off stage and I know you behind the mask, so please promise me that Rui”.

“I don’t get what you want me to promise” is her response, as if she were trying to make sure she didn’t promise something she couldn’t keep.

Tsukasa still needed hope, even if it was false hope, from her.

“Asshole” Tsukasa reiterates when she asks Rui to promise her, but truthfully, she has no right to get mad, no right to put restrictions on Rui’s hopes and dreams for the world.

Geez, Tsukasa doesn’t know if she can let Rui go undercover ever again.

“I promise” Rui declares with a sense of finality and the idol grasps onto those words like a lifeline. She has to believe in Rui. The urgency in their next kiss is enough proof of her lingering worries.

The time passes with the two periodically sharing light kisses, looking at each other in silence, confirming the other is there (although Tsukasa is more actively doing this, Rui’s heartbeat is rather soothing to her afterall).

The phone ringing brings the two out of their moment and Tsukasa is even more upset to find out it's hers. She doesn’t want this moment to end, but she still picked up the phone, not moving from her position.

“Tsukasa-chan?” a meek voice comes from the other side of the phone “Eh, Kanade? Is something wrong? I know you were part of my opening act, but surely you’ve had time to recover…”. Tsukasa looks over at Rui before putting the call on speaker phone.

“Oh, is Mizuki being mean to you? She mentioned plans of coming to visit, but I can assume she didn’t have the courtesy of telling you” Rui chimes, making her presence known to the white haired idol, who has no clue that she’s tracing circles onto Tsukasa’s hips as she speaks.

“I have something to say but it’ll be quick” Kanade eventually sighs, clearly still very tired after his few appearances tonight, but Tsukasa knows he is trying to build up even more stamina for when he sings alongside her, “I know we’re both busy–”.

“Don’t let us interrupt you if you want to make out with Mizuki. Tell me your concerns and I'll let you be on your merry way!” Tsukasa interrupts, wondering if she can find out if Mizuki was actually there and any tea with it, which she successfully gets.

Can’t blame a girl for being nosy.

“I uhh that’s not what I-” he stutters while a more feminine voice, clearly Mizuki, cackles in the background. She can also make out the sound of a gun clattering against someone’s pants. She then hears static on the phone before a more angry voice interrupts “Is Rui on the other side??!”.

“Oh, hey Nene!” she replies cheerfully and Kusanagi clearly is suppressing a silent scream.

“Mizuki came to visit Yoisaki” Kusanagi deadpans, “I thought that would mean you tagged along to see Tenma, but imagine my surprise when I saw the fucking news”.

“I am breaking the minds of the people that still had to see it on their screens to realize it happened at all” Rui replies nonchalantly, as if today’s events were another typical Tuesday for her.

Really, Tsukasa doesn’t know why she didn’t think they’d end up on anyone's camera, or maybe Rui didn’t care.

At that Kusanagi explodes, his anger a flurry of words that Tsukasa can easily guess Rui isn’t listening to and she makes a half hearted apology about clearing things up later, saying she has to get back to important business.

“Don’t you dare hang up on me ASSHOL—“ the line is cut off when Rui’s finger hits the end call button. She turns it on silent and places it out of Tsukasa’s reach before bringing them back to their original position.

“You’re so needy” Tsukasa sighs, resuming running her fingers through violet hair. She feels a huff of short air on her neck “Says you” .

“Fair game” the idol reluctantly admits before circling back to the question she had before “Did you end up getting the injury treated by a medic at any point?”.

The silence seals Rui’s fate. Tsukasa tries to grab one of Rui’s cheeks as she reprimands her but it doesn’t work.

“RUI GO TO A HOSPITAL” she all but shouts frantically but the response Rui chooses to do is to ignore her. She hears a mumbled apology against her skin and a firm kiss pressed on her pulse point, but other than that nothing.

Tsukasa supposes she’ll wait till the vigilante’s energy is recharged before making sure she treated her own injury right.

Chapter Text

One night, a lone pianist makes her way to an elegant banquet hall, nervous beyond belief about what the night could entail, which was certainly not her normal scene, so she had every right to feel anxious.

She felt the pressure for many many things. Being able to represent her true dream of performing on dazzlingly bright stages to the masses without sounding like a self-absorbed prick when it gets misinterpreted was one thing; doing so at a more formal event made her knees want to begin shaking.

Torpe can hear Taniyama’s words from earlier, telling her that she was the one chosen to attend a fancy event with Danchou, with the agreed murmurs of many orchestra members supporting such a decision. She can also still feel the hefty slap she got on her back once she said she’d do her best.

She has blonde hair tied into two low pigtails that rest past her shoulders, each with a white ribbon, each fading into a unique peach hue. Her evening gown was light pink with sequin applications, long sleeves, and a jeweled tulle neckline. It nearly reached the floor and she was worried more than once that she’d step on the fabric with her heels.

Torpe never dresses up, but tonight was different. Tonight, she was going to accompany Danchou to a function. So she had to beg her animal companions for help, since she was at a complete loss on how to dress for something so formal.

The squirrels and the birds had a blast while a dog tried to calm her down.

Tonight, she was with the leader; she had to look her best, otherwise her terrible luck would kick in and ruin everything! She was going to learn all she could tonight and show a lot of refined folk that she was a hard worker and a good representative of the orchestra.

So even if some of her steps are wobbly, she should never take the suggestion to wear heels from a cat; she eventually makes it to the place. She had walked to a classical piece playing in her head, allowing her to maintain the same BPM as the piece to exert some control.

She spots Danchou talking to another orchestra leader almost immediately; she has always caught Torpe’s eye, including the day she first walked into the bar.

Her long purple hair had a teal tint with two matching teal streaks, stylized into a ponytail that was cut rather bluntly at the end. Two strands, teal and purple, grew onto her shoulders, and her bangs never appeared to be brushed. Her evening gown was black with a purple fade and not as tight-fitting as Torpe’s, which makes sense since Torpe’s waist is smaller, plus she had a small jacket hanging off the top of her shoulders.

Danchou is so breathtakingly beautiful, Torpe can’t let her down since she had the honor of joining her tonight! She had to believe in herself, just like Kaiko said. So she finally gains the courage to go up to her and Danchou instantly turns around when she feels a light tap on her shoulder “Torpe-chan, you made it”.

Danchou looks her up and down and Torpe swears she sees a light blush appear on the leader’s face “My my, you’re stunning. And your hair is different, did someone help you out? If so, kudos to them for bringing out your natural beauty even more”. Really, Torpe wasn’t experienced in fashion at all, content with just wearing her regular boots and cape every day.

“A goat, two squirrels, a dog, a cat, and so on helped me,” Torpe thinks “But you wouldn’t believe me, even if I have a little nibble on my gown from Luki”. “Thank you, Danchou-san, you look very pretty tonight too”.

“Fufu, no one here gets the honor of standing next to you so perhaps I am the winner” she faintly hears Danchou mutter, before she shakes her head, “Well, the event is underway and there are a few people I need to talk to tonight. Other than that, we are free to enjoy this time to the fullest, the many musicians here will certainly help with some inspiration".

“Inspiration?” Torpe parrots back, Danchou doesn’t chastise her for not understanding, however, “Hmm, I recall you saying you are having trouble writing and interpreting some new pieces. Perhaps it is not because you lack the skill or determination, but something in your drive. Conversing with others may end up helping you with new perspectives, no?”.

Danchou was too kind to someone like her, too thoughtful to someone who had more than just feelings of admiration for her, someone who wished she had music sheets to hide the pink dusting her cheeks.

Trying to master an insanely difficult piece with complicated techniques on the piano was much easier than trying to understand her feelings!

When she finally recomposed herself, Danchou suggests they go inside and outstretches a hand, palm up to Torpe. She places her gloved hand into Danchou’s and lets her lead her into the building like a knight would.

She has to remind herself not to read too much into the gesture, creating a mantra telling herself that even though some parts could be interpreted as a date, it was very much not a date.

“Deep breaths, Torpe!”.

-----------------------------------------

The place is quite extravagant and Torpe is still amazed that she was asked to join Danchou, and why members of the orchestra had seemingly unanimously agreed she was the best fit.

Another time, she can think of that another time.

So far, she and Danchou had received praises and questions about their work, and Danchou sang even more about Torpe that the blonde felt the need to interject when she thought it was too much.

(She was squealing on the inside, though, not that anyone needed to know).

But she was speaking as well, slowly gaining more confidence when she recounted her experiences.

“Sometimes it’s best to imagine you are the person in the story the melody is trying to depict. Putting their feelings into the song, feelings you’ve resonated with, is a good start” the words fall out of her mouth with ease and she hasn’t even had a drop of alcohol.

The problem is that the guy she was talking to, while Danchou spoke to someone desperately trying to see if the orchestra had any openings, was not as interested in her musical knowledge.

She just wasn’t sure how to end the conversation without causing a scene; she’s never been in such a situation where she was representing the whole orchestra before. In an alley, she’d throw a punch if he stepped too close and she felt endangered, zero hesitation, despite most people assuming she was weak.

If she gets back to Danchou then maybe–

Then she feels an arm slip around her waist, she nearly screams before she recognizes the perfume belonging to the leader, and she has no clue why the sudden closeness has happened. She, as best as she can, looks discreetly at Danchou’s face, noting that she was still as calm and composed as either.

Torpe uses this opportunity to lean a little more into Danchou, but not enough to be considered like they were dating. 

(Although that question had already been asked, Danchou had simply smiled while Torpe waved her hands in front of her and denied such a thing, worried about how it would affect her leader, who didn’t like her back, obviously).

The man who had been slowly creeping closer before during their conversation had stopped entirely, even taking a step back before saying his goodbyes to get a refill on his glass.

More and more people stop them to talk about directing and piano techniques, to offer drinks that are mostly unaccepted, about the pieces they plan to perform, and the locations the orchestra is thinking about hitting next. The best part is that all throughout tonight, Torpe has felt seen.

But then it all happens at once; the sudden onslaught of loud noises, the setting up of instruments and the people boosting loudly, the air felt stuffy, and she just felt overstimulated. 

Clearly, it was evident enough because Danchou chose to excuse both of them from the conversation to bring her outside. Torpe feels terrible but also grateful. Danchou had moved her arm away from her waist to instead grab her hand and helped her navigate her way through the crowds of people that had gathered.

She felt awful. Danchou surely must be disappointed in her.

Once she feels calmer, her hand is still intertwined tightly in Danchou’s because she can never imagine having the chance to ever again. This whole night, Danchou has been giving her signs she has never taken to heart before, but the moments alone she has shared with her leader may surface once again–

Her heart is now beating fast, not from anxiety, but at the sudden realization of their proximity. So she focuses on the surroundings instead; it seems they are in an outside seating area away from the fast-paced music. The moonlight encases most things around them, including a piano.

She’s quick to apologize, but Danchou has none of it, saying that Torpe’s comfort was the top priority, not entertaining people. Torpe tries to voice that she’ll be fine in a few minutes, and that Danchou can go back inside to the people eagerly waiting for her, but the leader doesn’t leave, insisting on a break for both of them.

“We can take a break,” Danchou reiterates, “I don’t mind at all”.

So they talk under the moonlight, away from prying eyes and nosy ears. Torpe keeps everyone away from Danchou by accident and Danchou does vice versa for Torpe intentionally when she sees bad apples try to approach such an innocent woman.

Their little conversation eventually turns to the piano sitting all alone, and Danchou looks at her with a hint of expectancy as she makes her way over, dress shimmering in the moonlight.

Torpe frowns, feeling bad about not being able to do one of the only things she is good at (in her opinion), “I can’t play in heels, Danchou-san. My apologies”. Danchou doesn’t take offense to it. “Then it’s a good thing I can play,” she replies as if she was waiting for this moment, and presses a single key “So please give me a moment of your time”.

“You always watch me with such hopeful eyes. This is the least I can do,” Torpe thinks, but cannot say it out loud. She is scared that Danchou will find her feelings for her out of place, yet tonight has shown her a glimpse into what they could be.

Then Danchou starts playing.

The first few notes seem like a melody she doesn’t recognize, something slow that turns into something dreamlike. Torpe feels herself clasp her hands in front of her chest. It's the second movement of piano concerto, No.21, a song that was considered inherently romantic. Mozart wrote it and to learn it is considered only moderately difficult.

But the fact Danchou was playing the song for her made her incredibly flustered and honored.

She’s so entranced that when Rui rejoins her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder to gently bring her back, she still gets startled and tightens her clasped hands.

Danchou lightly laughs at her reaction, but it isn’t unkind “Did you like my performance? I admit I am more adept with the flute and my piano skills have a lot to be desired”.

“It was amazing!” Torpe is quick to reply and a tumble of compliments falls from her lips. When she finishes, she hides her mouth behind her hands and blushes quite fiercely “Sorry!”.

“Fufu, there is nothing to be sorry for. Compliments from my pianist are a great gift for me” Danchou responds smoothly and pries her hands away “Torpe-chan, did you have fun tonight?”.

“Of course I had fun with you Danchou-san, I learned a lot tonight” Torpe was quick to answer, a tired smile now gracing her lips “But I think I am ready to head home, if that is okay...”.

“It is more than okay, thank you for your hard work” Danchou is still smiling “And you shouldn’t think for a second that you were a bother tonight, people loved you so much I had to make sure they knew I was the lucky one who has you in their orchestra”.

Torpe looks genuinely confused and looks at Danchou for answers.

“What do you think it could mean? Why else would I advocate I take you to this function, it’s not just because of your talent,” she continues.

“I don’t know” Torpe pathetically admits, wishing she could know what went on in Danchou’s brilliant mind “Wasn’t it because of Taniyama-san persuading people? Or did Miyake-san and Hayashi-san have something to do with it too…”.

Her leader just smiles and moves to cup her chubby cheeks, ones Torpe is a little insecure about, so her blush remains there.

“I wanted you-no-I want you by my side” Danchou replies, rubbing her thumbs on Torpe’s cheeks “I like you, Torpe-chan. I was so happy when people assumed we were dating tonight”.

(Danchou is secretly overjoyed that the blonde chose to forgo wearing a cap tonight since now she has nowhere to hide those eyes she adored).

Torpe can’t take it; she feels like she is about to combust! No pep talk or advice could ever prepare her for when Danchou leaned in close to her.

Soft, that’s what Torpe first recognizes the feeling to be. Then she starts to panic in her mind once she realizes Danchou is kissing her!

Her lips are a little dry, but the way she cups her cheeks is so gentle, like Torpe was a delicate flower. What could only have been ten seconds, in which Torpe kisses back for about half the time, is a lot more in the pianist’s head.

An eternity seems to have passed when Danchou pulls back and Torpe flutters her eyes open without recalling when they had shut. That was her first kiss, pressing two fingers to her lips and whispering that fact to a very happy leader. She can’t help but look down because she can’t keep eye contact.

“I hope my feelings are clear now” causes her to look back up to a kind smile, something in Danchou’s golden eyes Torpe cannot fully place “Danchou-san?”.

She feels a pat on her head “When you are ready, please let me have the chance to court such a lovely lady”.

Once Danchou confirms Torpe can make it home safely, she bids farewell and goes back to join the crowds upon crowds of people; both those who had seen their show and those who haven’t had the chance to yet.

Torpe doesn’t move from that spot for a while, trying to process the entire night and wondering how she should even act around her crush, her mutual crush, tomorrow when she goes in for practice.

Torpe is a mess and she screams out of pure panic in her mind; she is happy, but she also wishes she could have given an answer to that question tonight.

“Of course I want you to court me, Danchou-san!” her cheeks puff out a little because she thought it was increasingly obvious that she had a crush on her.

A loud meow breaks her out of her thoughts, “MIKUO?”. If cats could smirk, then Mikuo definitely was, he knows he won’t dare speak in public, but the look screams to Torpe that he was going to run back and tell all her animal friends.

“Meow!” and he starts to run away.

“Mikuo, wait please!” Torpe starts to wish she didn’t wear heels; first because playing the piano in heels is a challenging feat, but now because he couldn’t catch a cat zig-zagging down the street while she is still flustered after being kissed.

Chapter Text

Detectives always work in pairs, for information but also for safety. To lose a partner was surely a devastating event.

A certain detective hopes this never happens, so she places trust in her skills and her partner’s patience for her own safety.

And Rui happened to be the best detective in the force, known for her groundbreaking case-solving record with impeccable accuracy. Beside her was her partner, Tsukasa, who deserved as much recognition as she did.

Yet some people thought the two didn’t deserve those accomplishments, so they always had to tell them to knock it off in other ways. Seriously, in this day and age either gender could dominate the workplace, why were people salty about it when it was a woman?

Rui tries to deter them with her appearance. Her violet hair is cut short like a guy's, with one side of the strands that frame her face, the one with the teal streak, being longer than the other. Some of her bangs fall over her right eye, which causes Tsukasa to lend her a hair clip most days because the blonde was insistent that she not damage her eyesight.

And speaking of trying to get her bangs out of her eyes, her partner is now leaning over the desk, trying to peer at Rui, mapping out the potential location.

Her blonde hair is in a high ponytail, held up by an elaborate diamond-shaped clip, with gold and white fabric attached to it. Her fluffy bangs frame her face, and the tips of her hair fade into a sharp red. Some say it's a bit too flashy for the job, but Tsukasa follows the dress code.

When she works, the ponytail moves alongside her; it's amusing to Rui, especially since that’s what’s happening as they ponder over the potential hideout of their perp, but perhaps that’s because she is leaning over to try and get a glance “Come on, Rui, put it on the board!”.

Rui can’t help but tease her because she thinks she’s cute. She likes Tsukasa, how could she not, so getting to work alongside her was a dream. Rui chuckles at Tsukasa’s pouting face as she gets up and adds the piece of evidence to the board.

She doesn’t let her crush get in the way of their cases, though, even if she gets increasingly worried about Tsukasa’s safety. She knows Tsukasa can defend herself, so the fear is unfounded, but that reasoning falls flat on her own ears. Tsukasa is capable, Rui is paranoid, plain and simple.

Hopefully, that fear won’t rear its ugly head today.

They debrief each other and Rui explains the new connections she’s gathered from her source on the road. This case was only turned over to them recently, despite it being open for longer; the incompetence of the previous pair was partially due to inexperience but also a few other factors.

Rui didn’t care about how the case ended up being assigned to them; she was going to do her best alongside Tsukasa to find the perpetrator and track down the latest missing girl. She hopes that she may still be alive, but Rui also recognizes that it was wrong to assume that she was.

She’ll let the victims’ families hold onto that hope till the end, till they confirm and find a body, because she wasn’t that heartless.

“I think our best chance is to go now, the prep would probably do their preparations at night,” Rui suggests, getting ready to leave which urges Tsukasa to do the same “We should still be on our guard if the building does end up being the right place”.

“Well, let’s do our best regardless!” Tsukasa proclaims as she drags Rui out of their office.

Oh, how Rui will soon wish that they had taken backup. But obviously that thought hadn’t crossed her mind when they arrived in front of the 4 story abandoned building.

“Stay safe out there, Rui!” Tsukasa says with a smile, despite the serious situation, that Rui can’t help but smile back, “You too, Tsukasa-chan. Shout if you find anything that could help us pinpoint the next victim or find the missing girl”.

A confident nod follows and the two set off. Tsukasa takes the top two floors while Rui takes the bottom. Anything pointing to the plans or just any evidence they can use to identify the perpetrator would be useful. Ultimately, Rui’s goal would be to catch them today and question them till she got the answers she wanted.

People could be really despicable.

Unfortunately, Rui hits the jackpot when she discovers a room full of messily put together investigation boards, locations and red strings scattered everywhere, and the words NEXT sprawled in messy handwriting at the certain of each board; the one she was looking at showing the latest victim with a shabbily drawn X over her face.

“Is this meant to be a showroom?” Rui ponders, “Well, putting that aside, I need to find a board with the next placeholder without the X”.

She finds it too quickly and her stomach drops.

It’s a photo of Tsukasa at the crime scene from a case they worked on last week, clearly taken without anyone noticing. Rui can see her hand in the frame, but nothing more; the photographer’s intention was clearly to only have captured her partner in the photo.

Rui sees her hands shaking; Tsukasa was the next target! She had to warn her quickly, so she started jogging toward the stairs, urgent but under the impression that it was only them present in the building.

She needs to stay calm, she needs to stay professional. She doesn’t know the motive, she cannot freak out.

Her paranoid thoughts are quickly becoming the new reality as she hears a crash and what sounds like Tsukasa’s gun flying across a room.

Rui starts the sprint in the direction the initial crash came from, thinking that maybe she had to call for backup, but she will assess the situation when she gets there. Hopefully, her partner wasn’t going to be used as a hostage. She’s on the top floor now, hearing what sounds like a struggle.

However, when she turns the corner, something—or maybe someone— hits her from behind. The force is so intense that it topples her to the ground, knocking her gun out of her hand.

A harsh scream echoes, which causes Rui to realize that it seems to be getting farther and farther away. She smells blood, something that might be coming from her.

The pain from the back of her head is too immense for her to even function properly, eyebrows furrowing in frustration as she tries to push herself up.

“No, no!” her eyes are falling shut against her will but the ringing in her ears and the throbbing in her head force her to pass out.

That was the last she heard of Tsukasa, that wretched scream and plea for help as her consciousness faded.

They recovered Tsukasa’s gun at the scene later and Rui felt even more sick. She still doesn’t know why she wasn’t taken as well, why she still had her gun, if they were targeting Tsukasa from the get-go…

Tsukasa being off the grid was the worst-case scenario Rui never wanted to happen, yet life was being rather cruel right now.

She had been useless when her partner needed her! And they hadn’t even fully grasped how and why the perp did what they do, they had planned to integrate him to find that out.

“I can’t just give up…”.

From that day on, it's a blur of cases throughout the day, and investigations about Tsukasa at night. She had to know what had happened, why the onslaught of sirens hadn't deterred the kidnapper from running away.

What could she have done? What should she do to get her partner back?

She had been searching for clues when she was off the clock, devastated that the case she had been working on with Tsukasa had gone cold, beyond upset that now of all times the culprit had seemingly disappeared without a trace.

She missed Tsukasa so badly, she wished her partner were here to give her a warm hug and tell her everything would be alright despite the cruel world they lived in.

So there is a small piece of hope she got from opening her, now strangely, unlocked door on the day the two-week mark hit. If it was open, that meant someone was in her place, but there were no signs of forced entry. 

Tsukasa was the only one who had a spare key to her shabby apartment. “Could that mean?” Rui tries calling out her name, but there is no response. What’s even weirder is that Tsukasa’s shoes weren’t at the door.

Maybe Tsukasa had just rushed in? The blonde tracking dirt into her house was the least of her problems; she just wanted to see Tsukasa, so she hastily threw off her shoes and her bag “Tsukasa-chan, are you here?”.

Her ideas of a reunion she had been longing for are destroyed the moment she steps foot past her door hallway.

It’s dark but the red is too vivid.

She’s dead, Tsukasa is dead on her living room carpet, her star and her partner was in a pool of dried blood that stank so heinously.

Her marigold eyes, once brimming with such determination, now snuffed out and devoid of nothing, eyes that still remained open despite her unmoving body.

Since the blood is dry and her skin is so pale — this could only mean that she was killed elsewhere and someone had dragged her here. The whole idea made her want to vomit even more.

“Tsu…kasa...-chan?” the shaky call of her name falls from her lips as she forces herself closer to the corpse. Why on earth was she expecting a response when she could only hear her own labored breathing?

Rui starts screaming so hard she thinks she’ll make her throat raw.

“Uw— AGHHHHHH!”.

Rui wakes up gasping for air, her throat sore from a scream she had yelled not in real life, a scream that never existed. Driven by instinct, she reaches for her gun, ready to go after the perpetrator who thought he could get away with such a heinous crime because if they were that sick in the head they still had to be in her apartment—

She snaps out of it when she hears snoring and her mind screams at her it was a dream. She’s acknowledged it was a dream, yet she still reached for her gun.

“What time is it?” she wonders, still half asleep, and glances at the clock, right after putting on her glasses, which reads 1 am. 

She runs a hand through her bangs, clearly in need of a hair wash, before trying to make sense of her surroundings.

She’s in her office, her arm has red marks from where she had fallen asleep on it, her desk still had numerous old reports she hadn’t packed away, and a cold cup of coffee was half full. Her tie was still snug around her neck and she wasn’t wearing her gloves.

That wasn’t the most important thing.

That went to the snores coming from her sleeping, very alive, partner. She realizes that Tsukasa must have been waiting for her again, perhaps even waiting for her to wake up, but had fallen also instead.

“I told you that you don’t have to wait for me, Tsukasa-chan” she mutters, tucking a strand of her loose hair. She wasn’t wearing her ponytail or its associated hair accessory and she was sprawled out on the couch that the office had for some odd reason came with.

Still in her work clothes, still with a little makeup on—

Still alive and well and breathing and not bleeding out on the floor.

“Just a dream,” Rui has to repeat in her head “It was just a dream”. But she still goes closer to get better reassurance.

She feels Tsukasa’s breathing on her shoulder as she leans over her, almost in a way that she could topple over at any second.

Tsukasa was so defenseless like this, rightfully so since she was sleeping, but all Rui could do was recall seeing her dead body.

Tsukasa was safe now but what about when she wasn’t? Was it right to promise that she’d keep Tsukasa safe no matter what?

She didn’t need confirmation; she made the promise by whispering it to the sleeping woman, blissfully unaware of the alternative universe Rui had conjured up where she died.

Someone so brave and determined to make the world a better place, a person that victims feel safe with, because Tsukasa’s intentions were as pure as snow.

Rui was really lucky to get assigned as her partner, even after their antics in the academy, but maybe someone up in the hierarchy recognized that they fit together, brought out the best in each other.

That’s why Rui has to keep her promise, no matter how dangerous their day-to-day operations could be.

And she’ll start that promise off by waking her up and walking her home despite knowing that Tsukasa is more than capable enough to do so. 

Before they leave the office, she’ll also help clip Tsukasa’s bow back on her detective hat, something cheesy she had despite their serious occupation.

Rui hopes she’ll keep that promise for decades to come, even if she dies while doing so.

Chapter Text

Once upon a time, things were a little more peaceful than they were today. Is it hard to believe that the screams of fallen soldiers were not what people woke up to?

The white lily knows of this time.

The white lily waited by the window as the moon shone on her, accompanying her until the lady she wanted to arrive climbed into her room. She had combed her blonde hair till the peach hues had no knots and she rubbed her droopy eyes to keep herself awake.

She was waiting for her black lily.

If the people from town heard about the forbidden relationship while the waters were still rocky, she wasn’t sure what would happen.

“The universe doesn’t make mistakes, just really rough drafts,” the black lily had told the white lily when she asked if it would have been easier if their two kingdoms could have just always co-existed peacefully.

She fell head over heels for the black lily and she never wanted to go back to the time before. She wanted to proclaim her feelings to the world!

Shout it out! Make a scene!

The journey from the dark mansion was a treacherous one, so the black lily graciously offered for her to come over instead.

They’d usually met behind a garden wall, encased in a space that was truly theirs alone. A secret only they shared as they hugged and laughed with each other. The white lily always felt safe in the black lily’s arms.

And as she turns to look out the window, she’s met with the most stunning golden eye.

Her violet hair was leaning toward black, straight, and reached toward her waist. The ends were curled and two darker shades of teal were present there as well. She hid behind the strands that covered half her face and that rather large top hat, but the white lily always told her she never needed to hide in front of her.

So when she hops into the room after jumping the windowsill, the white lily falls into her arms, tucking that pesky strand of her away so she can see both cyan and gold.

“My black lily,” she swoons happily and the black lily replies when she takes a hand to the white lily’s cheek, “My beloved white lily, happy birthday. I am sorry I am so late, something came up last minute that I couldn’t sneak away from”.

With her hair loosely encasing her face, the white lily leans into her hand, holding said hand in both of her softer ones. She closes her eyes in content, smiling as she nuzzles those calloused hands. The white lily knows that soon the black lily will play with the ends of her hair, afterall she loved to do so.

The black lily stares at her with the same love the white lily was showcasing right now. When she moves her hand away, she chuckles at how the white lily pouts “I cannot stay for long, but I had to give you my gift. I wish it were more extravagant, but my duties have crept on me much faster than I had anticipated”.

The white lily peers curiously as her lover reaches for a bouquet she hadn’t even noticed, when adorned with various flowers.

Black lilies, a hint at the depth of her passion.

Peonies, enduring devotion and good fortune.

Pink tulips, a tender, caring affection and happiness.

And a single white lily, in honor of her lover’s image.

“It’s perfect!” the white lily proclaims, gently running her fingers on the many petals, smiling cheerfully. She sets the bouquet onto her vanity before coming back to the black lily, wrapping her arms around her.

She feels the same happen to her and before she knows it, they are spinning around her room as if they were dancing. Laughs and giggles were heard instead of music as they danced with no rhythm.

Moments like these should never end; the white lily never wants them to end.

She wonders if one day they could dance like this in a ballroom where people celebrated their love, where all love could prosper.

When they slow down, the white lily is reluctant to part, peppering small kisses to where her lips could reach on the taller lady until they fully detach.

The white lilt doesn’t want to hear the next words that come out of the black lily’s mouth.

“I best be going, otherwise I might cause more trouble than I am worth” the black lily presses a firm kiss to her forehead, then a soft kiss to the tip of her nose, then a final kiss to her lips before starting to move away.

But the white lily did not want to part with her so soon! Even if she had been told beforehand that their meeting would be briefer today.

“Stay, it’s my birthday wish,” the white lily pleads, tugging the black lily’s coat sleeve and slowly moving her toward the plush bed. She left no room for argument.

So to grant her birthday wish, she cuddles with her white lily until she absolutely has to leave. Their body temperatures were different, but they complemented each other well.

And with a kiss, the white lily sent her off and wished her luck on the way back home. The world stopped when they spent time together, but started again when they parted. Tomorrow could be the day peace would flourish between the two nations and they finally could stop hiding. Then they would never have to worry about being caught again.

“The end… Hah, that’s better than the reality”. The fairytale dissolves so fast it's like sand falling through someone’s fingers.

The book closes with a quiet thud from where it lies on the ground. Right in front of it was a well-polished gravestone.

“Did you like the story, Rui? I think I painted our love in quite a lovely light, even if it's only a glimpse. I plan to write more” a figure dressed in a black cloak speaks, bringing the book to her chest and lovingly tracing the hard cover, “You were always the better writer. I couldn’t write long enough to add more details because our time is fading from my memory…”.

That’s right, the gravestone read Kamishiro Rui, the black lily from the story hadn’t gotten her happy ending.

She was taken too too soon, her life snuffed out much earlier than the figure ever wanted it to. They had killed Rui for no reason, not even an inkling of any kind of why Rui was found dead with arrows through her chest, face stuck in a petrified state.

Rui had mentioned before that she noticed how the kingdom’s heads had an increasingly souring relationship, and as the head diplomat, it was her duty to ensure it was solved or at least compromised.

They had killed the wilted lily’s lover, the lady in the cloak was Tsukasa coming to visit her once again. Her eyes were tired and her hair was longer.

“Rui would have loved playing with my hair at this length…”.

Tsukasa had yelled till her voice was sore and broken, begging Mikuo for any information on why he was throwing everything away.

That was enough for Luki to wage war, to hell with all the truce and the peace treaties — and the residents of the black lily kingdom agreed.

Tsukasa did too, that’s why she showed up on the manor doorstep, a single white lily and a single black lily in her hands.

Mikuo had kicked her out but gave her a few minutes to grab stuff from her room, which she put in her satchel. But Mikuo wasn’t generous; Tsukasa’s perception of him was forever ruined.

A boy with purple hair had answered the door, taken one look at her white attire, and was prepared to strike.

Why would a white lily offer herself like a lamb to the slaughter? At least, that’s probably what he saw. Thankfully, she was still alive.

Luki had accepted her with open arms, promising to adhere to their deal of complete compliance as long as none of the white lily’s siblings were harmed.

It was Mikuo they were after, not the innocent bystanders who wanted to spread peace throughout their kingdoms. Although these coming weeks had shown her how corrupt her kingdom actually was.

All she wanted was the lilies to be united. Why was that so difficult? Why was that so selfish?

That day won’t come, nor will the day come when Tsukasa can wake up to Rui again and wish they were wed.

Wish they were far away from all their duties and could just love each other contentedly with endearment in their eyes.

Mikuo took that away and now he’s going to have to reap what he sowed. Tsukasa will make sure he suffers until the last breath. A sight only they could have.

“I miss you, Rui” she whispers, tears falling onto the stone in front of her, “I don’t think I could ever stop”.

Even as the war continues, Tsukasa won’t change sides, and she’ll tell her love story with Rui to anyone who will listen with the help of her book, preserving the memory of her beloved who became a victim of the conflict too soon.

Chapter Text

A wolf was vicious when she needed it, strength hidden behind a pretty face, and a cunning smile that shone brightly with bloodlust in the opportune moment.

That’s what helped Kamishiro Rui strike side jobs with the mafia, something a lot of people had no clue about. It made good money, which let Rui explore her theatrical pursuits so she didn’t mind at all.

She was also shamed for being a predator animal rather than a prey one, so she’ll use it to her advantage. A pretty face that hides her intentions, not some damsel standing in the rain for someone to save her, but rather someone using the sounds of the rain hitting the ground to conceal her final blow.

Her hair was long with wavy strands that framed her face and her tinted-out sunglasses. In the back were two round string braids that rested on the back of her neck, and her bangs were tossed around so that most didn’t fall on her forehead. More importantly, she has two pointy ears, one pierced with a cyan earring, on the top of her head. She has a matching tail fading from purple to teal to match, but she rarely gives away her emotions through it.

She has to have a good poker face when on the job and people assuming she has no clue what she is doing before she strikes had clearly never heard about the big bad wolf; it was their assumption of her ignorance that led to their downfall.

And now Rui gets to go home and eat the ice cream pops she has left over in her fridge, that thought persisting as she hopes no blood gets tracked alongside the dirt in the building hallways, and if it did, she hopes the cleaning auntie doesn’t mind. She’ll buy her lunch again for her troubles.

She also should text Tsukasa, one of her favorite people in the world, and the lucky lady she happens to be dating. She had turned her phone off the entire time except for messages regarding the mission, so she’ll have to make up for the lack of attention.

“Ah, home sweet home”.

When she walks into her apartment after chucking her shoes off, she is surprised to see her girlfriend standing in the living room. Although she shouldn’t really be, Tsukasa stays over so much she might as well be living here; heck, a bunch of her stuff already has a permanent place in Rui’s abode.

“Tsukasa-chan?” she says, a bit surprised that she was here right now since Rui had left yesterday evening. She didn’t need permission to stay over, but it really was a nice treat for her to see her lover after a job well done.

Her hair is ruffled and so are her messily put-together bangs, her hair fluffy towards the ends that reach the back of her neck. In her hands are towels and other bathroom necessities, which promptly drop to the floor with a loud thud at the sight of her girlfriend. 

An important thing to note is that Tsukasa was an owl hybrid, so right now Rui can tell she got spooked because her wings are spread out as if she was threatened, but she quickly recovers.

“Why the hell did you not answer your phone?!” is the first thing that comes out of her mouth, but she disregards that thought when she sees the blood and dirt “What the hell were you doing for over a day?!”.

“A job” is Rui’s simple reply and Tsukasa smacks her forehead “Okay, so it’s confidential, but please tell me that isn’t your blood on your sleeves…”.

“Oh, it is mine,” the wolf replies, “So I don’t have to worry about anything”.

“Worry about anything, my ass! Your wooden floors are getting splattered with blood” Tsukasa sighs heavily, “What should I even do with you? You’re an adult acting stupidly”.

“Then Tsukasa-chan will have to help me clean, shiku shiku” she fake sobs as Tsukasa gathers the items she had dropped previously “Quit your whining, clearly we both need to go take a shower, so let’s just go together”.

When she looks at Tsukasa, she sees her as still clean, so by pure impulse she reaches out and smears dirt with flecks of blood onto Tsukasa’s arm. Now Tsukasa had dirt to take care of in the shower.

The gasp is almost immediate with the upset call of her name, “Kamishiro Rui! I take back what I said, stay here and clean the damn floor unless you want an extra fee from your landlord”.

“Now now, I was just giving you a reason to stay for longer,” she twirls a teal strand of her hair, “Maybe help me wash my hair so it's as silky and smooth as yours?”

Tsukasa’s expression remains unimpressed as she takes one step forward toward the bathroom.

In response, the wolf reaches behind herself to undo her braids and let her hair loose. Her ears droop down as she leans closer to the owl. “Come on, don’t go back on what you said before…” Rui brings out her puppy dog eyes, reading to poke a finger in Tsukasa’s face before the blonde grasps her wrist, “It was an honest mistake, Tsukasa-chan”.

Tsukasa always gave in at the end, no matter how much she wanted to proclaim she could resist the charm. That weak resilience is how Rui got Tsukasa to engage in a make-out session right before a stealth case they were assigned; she still remembers it beginning to rain as she pushed Tsukasa into the wall to steady her grip…

“Fine! Come with me, you big baby. You’re so verbose in your demands” Tsukasa eventually says as she grabs the cheeky wolf’s hands, said wolf ready to be pampered after such a long mission.

She sticks to her word, forcing Rui to sit on the shower stool immediately once they are both nude and the owl goes wild, spraying all the dirt and dry blood off, plus wetting her hair. The water pressure is harsh for Rui but she doesn’t say anything when Tsukasa turns it off to squirt shampoo out of the bottle and begins to massage the product into her scalp, into the strands of her hair, which causes Rui’s shoulders to slump as she relaxes.

She repeats the process after rinsing out the shampoo, using a long comb to ensure all the product is removed. The conditioner is not applied to the top of her head to avoid her hair becoming too oily.

Tsukasa was much more knowledgeable in self-care. Rui praises her for it as the second round of product rinses out her hair and the comb is put through to make extra sure.

Tsukasa huffs, embarrassed, “Yeah yeah, now leave me be while I wash my feathers”.

After they (see: Rui) stopped fooling around, they got cleaned quite quickly. Even if Tsukasa thought it’d be funny to dump a bucket of water all over her instead of passing her the showerhead, so the purple-haired wolf did the same back, just not over her head because a wing tries to whack her.

She liked how comfortable they were with each other.

Rui is content with just her pyjamas and a towel around her shoulders but Tsukasa was having none of it, pausing while drying her wings to glare at Rui “Sit down now”. Tsukasa’s hair was dry since she hadn’t washed it today, so her ears had already been cleaned while Rui had put her clothes on.

The wolf laughs, lazily wagging her tail as she salutes and says “Yes, ma'am ~”. She sits at the foot of the bed as Tsukasa changes into a pair of shorts yet no halter top, because her wet wings need to be free. The blonde really doesn’t like damp clothing.

Rui blinks and the next moment Tsukasa is sitting on her knees on the bed behind her, hair dryer in hand. It’s at a low and cool setting, Tsukasa dries her hair without hitting either of her ear canals and actually targeting places Rui doesn’t ever think about when she towel dries her hair.

She loves it when Tsukasa insists on doing something so relaxing, so domestic, despite the chaos the duo consistently finds themselves in. She feels so cared for, so vulnerable, as Tsukasa is being so careful with her sensitive ears.

When she is done, she instructs Rui to stand up so she can blow-dry her tail. A puff of air from the hair dryer has her tail bristles up at the suddenness of it. Tsukasa laughs at her reaction as she sets the hair dryer down, clearly having not given a warning on purpose for her own amusement.

“You should make yourself some dinner. I highly doubt you’ve eaten anything since you’ve left the apartment,” Tsukasa chastises her, as she stretches and flings her legs over the side of the bed.

“Please make something with vegetables,” she pleads too, although it really falls on deaf ears, before she sighs and gets back to drying her feathers. Rui doesn’t move from her spot so she doesn’t continue for very long “Rui?”.

A towel is placed behind Tsukasa, as well as Rui, before she reaches out to Tsukasa’s wings “Could I try preening your feathers?”.

“Eh?” Tsukasa is shocked but she doesn’t seem fully opposed to it “After last time’s disaster?”.

“I’ll do better” Rui says quietly and Tsukasa gives her the go-ahead, letting the wolf dry her wings, taking the time to get rid of an accumulating moisture.

“Just say something if it is uncomfortable for you, my star” Rui makes sure to say before she begins to preen her wings. Tsukasa’s nervous breathing had died down quite quickly once she realized Rui wasn't going to try and bite her wings again; her teeth were too sharp and Tsukasa hadn’t appreciated that last time.

This activity is a big display of trust. Now, Tsukasa was the one being vulnerable, so Rui has to do her best not to end up on the wrong side of those talons. She took a lot of pride in her feather health, so Rui was going to make sure they were up to her standards. Tsukasa’s tail twitches at a spot the wolf puts extra care in, so she must be doing something right.

She smooths the disarranged feathers slowly and carefully back into their proper place, making sure the strands are hooked together again. Then, being mindful of her claws, Rui uses a gentle pinching motion with her fingers to help get rid of the dry sheath that had accumulated, perhaps because Tsukasa couldn’t reach those particular pin feathers.

When Rui announces she is done, Tsukasa turns around tentatively and stretches her wings, peering at the results with great detail but making it so Rui was unable to see her expression. So she collects all the sheaths and pesky dirt pieces that Tsukasa had gotten in the shower from the extra towel she had placed down away as Tsukasa puts on the white halter top she had nearby.

Then the wolf plops back down ungracefully onto their shared bed.

“Was I better this time?” Rui questions, already knowing the answer from the way Tsukasa avoids eye contact despite the wolf moving to sit next to her, from how the ears perk up in excitement, and the small glimpse of flushed cheeks she could catch.

Tsukasa is quiet as she shuffles closer to Rui, raising her wings and curling in her feet, before she leans on Rui’s shoulder. Rui doesn’t object, bringing an arm around Tsukasa’s waist, obviously below her wings.

“Tsukasa-chan is trying to reinforce our connection… cute” she thinks dreamily, not willing to say something teasing to her to break the moment or stop her nuzzling.

How anyone could find the owl intimidating, even when covered with blood on her sharp talons, was beyond Rui.

Later tonight, as a thank you, she’ll kiss the owl senseless until they both can’t breathe.

Chapter Text

The village was quiet and almost desolate this time of year, with many people skipping out on the last weeks of school, and no staff or security bothered to stay after hours or on the weekends.

Why even put the last weeks on the academic calendar? The last week had no classes, to the point Tsukasa even wonders if this breaks any academic guidelines the school has to have.

More to other people’s advantage, it’s not like they are stealing anything. Yes, plural, in both yokais and humans.

And now she was on the school grounds because of her kitsune’s weird preferences, brushing out her fur. She wanted to look presentable and clean, which the blonde completely understood.

Tsukasa liked to think she was already quite put together; after all, she had a reputation to maintain at school as the reliable leader of the student council. Her black sailor uniform was always straightened, and her pleated skirt reached past her knees, and her socks were the same length as each other. Her hair was stylized into a himecut with blonde being more predominant than its peach hues and she wore glasses that framed her face perfectly.

So why wouldn’t she want her yokai, who graciously based their human appearances on her as well as their fur on her hair colors, to look beautiful as well?

The kitsune enjoys this time, as she tends to like overseeing the courtyard and the small gardens tended to the gardening committee. She could be rather peculiar about what was ‘good enough for her’ which is the whole reason they are on deserted school grounds.

Well, that and the ongoing investigation happening on the other side of the school.

Tsukasa hears happy mews and whines when the brushing stops. The tanuki has happily nestled her little body in front of her childhood friend, Shizuku. He had a pale blue layered bowlcut and glasses as well, positioning himself properly so the fur does not get on the black fabric of his gakugan.

“Oya, she’s certainly enjoying herself” Shizuku happily says as Tsukasa rolls her eyes. The tanuki has a clear crush on Shizuku, but it’s harmless and lets the tanuki get properly groomed.

A bunch of girls in school had a crush on Shizuku, too bad a boy named Mafuyu caught his eye before any girl could even try.

This tanuki had to be the most spoiled one in existence, but right now Shizuku indulges her as he speaks to Tsukasa about summer plans. Their brothers are not cursed like them, so they’ll be travelling together with their two other friends away from the town.

Right now, none of the cursed humans had even tried leaving the full area of the village, too afraid of what could happen. But Tsukasa isn’t going to think about that right now.

“I want to try and dispel the rumor about the dying tree by the shrine, you know the one about confirming you and your partner’s true love~” he dreamily says and Tsukasa points out “Doesn’t that mean that you’d disappear if it’s true? Would Mafuyu be okay with that, he doesn’t really like going to the other side that much”.

“Fufu, silly Tsu-chan I already asked him and he’s okay with it! Recently, the eyes have been dialed down so he wants to try and test the waters again” Shizuku answers, “He’s amazing”.

“Oh! You should try it with Rui-chan! I bet you two will instantly get transported to, then all four of us can report back to Airi-kun that it’s true, so that he can put the proper precautions in place!” he cheerily says.

Tsukasa blushes “Wait? Why me and Rui? We’re not even… she… Rui doesn’t like me like that!”.

If she looked properly, she would have seen the tanuki trying to do a facepalm with her paws.

Shizuku chuckles “And people say I am nothing but a handsome face… Tsu-chan, it’s undeiable”.

“DOES RUI KNOW I LIKE HER?” she shouts, desperate for an answer. Shizuku simply frowns.

Before he can even try to drop a hint to the obvious girl, a loud thud comes from behind them. When they turn around, an ominous yokai is there with its long and big boney body, its hollow eyes, and hands that have killed thousands.

“Gasha!” Tsukasa exclaims as she sees the skeletal yokai join them, her body big but the fact they are outside.

This yokai is linked to Rui. She wanted her to have a cute nickname so she took ‘Gasha’ from gashadokuro, and everyone had adapted to calling her that.

Despite not having an eyes, her body makes it so she is eyeing her recently groomed yokai, and she looks almost sad?

Tsukasa can’t be having that!

“Oh! Of course, you can join in, give me a second, I already have an idea!” she says while moving away from the kitsune and going toward her bag.

The kitsune doesn’t make any noise nor make any move to transform into her human appearance, merely curling up and watching her human’s movements.

Tsukasa appreciates that she isn’t mad— or at least not willing to prank her in this very moment. When she went to sleep could be an entirely different story and she isn’t sure her brother wants to wake up to her yelling in the river near their house again.

She had brought a multitude of ribbons and bows with her today for the kori. She had admittedly brought varying sizes of fabric so if she linked some together, she’d have them big enough for the gashadokuro’s head.

“Fufu, Tsu-chan is always so kind to Gasha… but I think she also does it so Rui-chan can praise her,” Shizuku remarks when he sees how invested Tsukasa gets in picking the colors. Tsukasa prominently ignores that implication, “Gasha is my friend too”.

She passes the right doubled end through the lop, takes it out, and pulls both ends. She does a few more folds and the first bow is done and secure. She repeats the process until three differently colored bows adorn the bony head.

Gasha honestly cannot show emotion, but the nudge she gets is more than enough. So Tsukasa hugs the side of her hand to her best ability, probably one of the only humans in existence to do so without dying.

She brings up her little mirror so Gasha can see her reflection before placing it down on the empty chair outside. Now something so deadly looked very cute! 

Shizuku even came over to point it out “Woah, Tsu-chan. You really outdid yourself”. 

“And it’ll hopefully keep in place for the day! As long as Rui doesn’t decide to clear out a field of harmful spirits on a whim again…”. Tsukasa hopes Rui has the fence to hold off from today, but since Gasha is roaming away from Rui, it likely means there is no danger around.

Maybe today will be peaceful?

“If I wear bows in my hair, will you call me pretty too, Hinomori?~” a girl nearly identical to Tsukasa says, the difference being her messy uniform, the round ears atop her head, and the messy mullet falling on her shoulders.

“You’re so shameless,” Tsukasa remarks, which causes the tanuki to stick out her tongue out “You’re also! I’ve seen your goo goo eyes!”.

Tsukasa gasps “Excuse me?!” but the tanuki lowered her ears to make a pleading expression as if mimicking Tsukasa doing ‘those eyes’.

Their banter is interrupted by a sudden and dull “Hello”.

A boy with short purple hair and a dead stare had seemingly just appeared in the courtyard, startling Tsukasa and her yokai, but causing Shizuku to happily exclaim “Mafuyu-kun!”. 

“Momoi-kun needs our help” Mafuyu says, “Kamishiro-chan suggested that your skills may prove more useful to his predicament". It’s rather monotone, so Tsukasa cannot make out the severity of the situation being portrayed.

“It’s the freaky bird eye boy,” the tanuki says now that she has transformed. “Don’t be rude” Tsukasa immediately chastises her, about to pull one of her spouted small round ears, but someone even more threatening appears out of nowhere almost instantly.

Shizuku leans in closer to the tanuki almost menacingly "Especially since that’s my boyfriend, insensitive tanuki”. She’s quick to hide behind Tsukasa, her tail bristling up under his stare. She whispers “I forgot how scary Hinomori can get… but it’s kind of attractive”. She fixes the glasses that look out of place in her delinquent vibe.

“Fufu, Momoi-kun is still so very human” Rui chimes in as she steps into the view, before falling silent. Her eyes lock onto her yokai companion. She’s dressed in her uniform, even if the collar and blazer are in a disarray, along with her school ribbon. Her unruly purple hair is tied in a low ponytail and she is wearing the school pants instead of the usual pleated skirt.

“It's a more house-based spirit, so your expertise would be greatly appreciated,” Mafuyu continues, straightening out his gakugan from how Shizuku now hugged his side “Oh? Because of my little playful little friend? I’d need to call her out though”. His ‘little friend’ was a zashiki-warashi, which may not be as playful as he commonly depicted.

The dodomeki-cursed boy nods “Mhm, although we should hurry”. He turns to acknowledge Tsukasa “Tenma-chan, is that alright?”.

Tsukasa gives an enthusiastic thumbs up “More than alright! Go spend some time with Shizuku afterward too, you’ve been working hard as this star’s vice president”.

He nods “Understood” and while to most it was said plainly, Tsukasa could pick up the small hint of gratitude in his tone.

“Well then, I best be going to help Airi-kun as soon as possible!” the air-headed boy says, reaching for the purple-haired boy’s hand “See you later Tsu-chan, Kamishiro-chan! Let’s go, Mafuyu-kun~”.

“You too, Shizuku! Thank you for all your help for today!” she gleefully waves goodbye to her childhood friend.

Mafuyu shows little to no reaction, although quite delayed, but still grabs the hand that had entwined with his, strangely feeling a little warm because of it. The strange couple leaves to head into the building to go find Airi.

Momoi Airi, that boy was always a special case. He wasn’t a cursed human with a yokai companion, but rather stuck with a curse none of them could ever identify. He had decided to turn it into something positive by becoming ‘Happy Everyday’ which had led him to discover all four of them were cursed.

He didn’t snitch to the village though, so none of them were prosecuted. Airi keeps their secret and the group does their best to help him in his adventures. Well, now they were all friends.

Back to the present, Tsukasa turns to see Rui essentially petting Gasha, hands running over the skeletal frame with awe rather than the fear the gashadokuro would so commonly strike in people’s hearts.

“Did you do this, Tsukasa-chan?” she asks, but doesn’t turn around to see Tsukasa’s nod before the blonde realizes she has to answer verbally “Yes, I did! I didn’t want Gasha to feel left out”.

Rui hums in response and Tsukasa clutches the front of her chest to still her fast beating heart.

“Blushy, blushy” she hears the tanuki start to tease and the kitsune tilts her head to the side in agreement. Tsukasa is displeased with the two of them “Shut up!”.

“Hey prez?” Rui asks and all three heads turn to her. A sheepish smile graces the purple-haired girl’s face before saying, “Would you make me pretty, too? Fufu, I want to match with Gasha”. The gashadokuro perks up at that, something so scary and deadly was here begging her to put a bow on her human companion.

Later on, the kitsune commented that her eyes had apparently lit up like fireworks before she rushed behind Rui, untying her ponytail and combing her locks. The knowing look from the now transformed kitsune isn’t unnoticed, but Tsukasa knows that yokai is happy that she can be this happy from a simple activity involving Rui.

She takes turns doing small braids on each side of her head, before curling them together to form little braid buns, one on each side. She goes to the front to properly check and mess with Rui’s bangs, failing to notice the blush that had begun showing itself rather prominently.

She’s humming as she works, fixing her glasses as she ties a final braid.

Maybe Tsukasa didn’t notice the blush because she was questioning how she hadn’t realized the entire time she was dressing up Gasha, that she wanted to do the same to Rui too. The fact that she had a hairstyle in mind already said a lot.

She intertwines two ribbons into the buns and smiles when she is finished. “And done!” Tsukasa puffs out her chest proudly “A hairdo fit for a star and matching ribbons to match with Gasha!”.

The purple-haired girl tentatively brings a hand to the right side of her hair, gently touching the blonde’s handiwork. “Thank you, Tsukasa-chan, although I can’t see it, I am sure you did well” Rui comments, which Tsukasa takes to heart “Of course, I care about my appearance!".

“Is that why you got chosen to be the face of the council?” she teases and obviously she doesn’t believe that this certain scenario happened, but Tsukasa still huffs. She crosses her arms and looks to the side, “Hmph, with how many times I’ve had to straighten your uniform and properly your school bow, I am surprised you even put your hair up in a ponytail most mornings. You’re naturally pretty, you should take advantage of that, you could impress any boy”.

“Maybe I do it because I like when you fix them for me, and because it gets some nice rumors going around the school, fufu~” Tsukasa pretends she didn’t hear Rui say that last part.

“I wouldn’t want to look good for a boy anyway…” also goes unheard, but this time unintentionally since it's mumbled. The kitsune’s ears twitch, subtly telling Rui that only she had picked up on it.

The student council president then claps her hands together “Anyway! Let me get my mirror so you can see how pretty you look”. She confidently reached for where she had placed it down, only to pat nothing but an empty chair.

However, next to the chair stands the tanuki with a shit eating grin, using the mirror to check out herself and her recently fluffed mullet “Hey!”.

“What?” she snickers, “Finders keepers!”.

“That’s not how it works!” Tsukasa grumbles when she feels a tail bat her hand away, ready to bargain for it back, when Rui beats her first by intimidation. “Give me the mirror” she says, eyes narrowing as she impatiently puts out her hand, the kitsune swipes it from the startled tanuki.

“Serves you right fufu” the kitsune laughs behind her hand, clearly mocking her fellow yokai before making the next words are ones that neither human could hear, “Tsukasa is clearly in love, isn’t it wonderful?”. She twirls one of the two braids hanging on her shoulders, her tail swaying lazily after. Gasha tries her best to nod, which pleases her because her ears twitch happily.

“I forgot how much of a romance nerd you are” the tanuki grumbles “... and I guess Kasa-chan deserves it”.

The kitsune nods in approval before whacking the tanuki on the head “She does deserve it after dealing with your antics”.

“You mean our antics!” a thwack of a rounded tail brushes against at least three others.

Another smack to the top of her head “Yeah, through your deluded lens”.

“YOU’RE WEARING GLASSES TOO!”.

Rui and Tsukasa are unaware of what is transpiring because they are too lost in talking to each other.

Chapter Text

To devour someone that makes her undeniably worse; someone that so clearly had the potential to help her remove her flaws, someone that was so like her yet not at the same time.

Rui thinks about this as she pushes Tsukasa down onto the white sheets, towel slipping from the blonde’s shoulders, her own being discarded long ago.

To outsiders, they look strange, perhaps even thinking Rui had ulterior motives when pressing Tsukasa down like this, just as both of them had gotten out of the shower, not even fully dressed.

Did they look like lovers? 

However, this makes Rui feel fulfilled, seeing only Tsukasa like this, and having Tsukasa only see her like this. Stripped down of nearly everything and basically left bare, it excited Rui because she felt vulnerable. She lightly traces the silver name etched into Tsukasa’s skin, on her hip that even her underwear couldn’t conceal, watching her squirm but not pull away.

This isn’t the first time this has happened, falling into the sheets and just staring, existing, wishing they lived in a different world.

A world where they aren’t ruthlessly tortured to participate in a singing competition that none of the participants took joy in. They were trapped with no escape, so they had to make do with the minimal moments they had.

Rui decides to spend it lying on top of Tsukasa, enjoying the way her star’s chubbier tanned frame contrasted with her thinner pale one, enjoying the way Tsukasa looks at her expectantly, enjoying how it was no one else but them.

“So cute” Rui whispers, enjoying the way Tsukasa’s cheeks set a flame because of a simple observation.

When she leans over Tsukasa, her long bangs still cover her face. Tsukasa’s hair was actually well maintained, as per the limited free range the star was granted, while Rui’s was only cut if it truly hindered her vision.

“You can never be too prepared for what happens on stage”.

Rui feels sick thinking about her supposedly loving caretaker. So she doesn’t; she thinks about this beautiful girl. This gorgeous girl with an alive beating heart.

A girl that she fixated on and a girl she needs to keep alive.

A lamb.

As if to interrupt Rui’s silent staring, Tsukasa reaches up to tuck violet hair behind her ears, moving her bangs, all to see her face better. Unbeknownst to Rui, Tsukasa’s heart leaps at the sight.

“Rui…”.

Tsukasa had been through her own turmoil, yet she was still so painfully human, so pure, so innocent. Her skin was soft to touch and she smelled delightful. Rui didn’t deserve having the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to know this work of art, a work of art that Rui gave all her admiration.

She wasn’t going to conform to what the aliens expected; they think they could suddenly control a human who knows who she was from the very beginning? Even when she was being auctioned off, she knew she had always been different, with the way many avoided placing bids.

Disgusting, they were all disgusting.

“She’ll definitely win”.

“A pretty voice and face, no one stands a chance”.

“My most prized possession, she’ll soar to heights no one has ever pictured”.

She’s going to flee, to jump and never look back. She wants to quit, but she can’t avoid it. Those words, along with all her thoughts about Tsukasa, flood her mind, making it hard to even think about herself.

“You’ve been trying hard lately, haven’t you?” Tsukasa asks “You should rest while you still can”.

“I can manage just fine, Tsukasa-chan. Fufu, instead of being concerned for me, you should put that energy into maintaining your routine,” she answers, tracing random shapes on her tummy.

“You can’t blame me for worrying, everything has gotten so intense lately, especially from the alien in charge of me,” Tsukasa shamefully says “I— I can’t help it”.

Tsukasa doesn’t even know that hideous alien’s name; they hadn’t bothered to give Tsukasa such basic information.

So Rui shushes her quietly, as if to tell her she shouldn’t concern herself with such worries right now.

Rui is drowning in her own powerlessness to fix anything; she isn’t the one in control of her own life — her name etched on her left pectoral makes that even more apparent. It’s such a destructive way of living, but it gives her purpose.

She’ll never be able to direct and perform the shows she had always dreamed of, she’ll always end up being forced to sing and do inhumane experiments to achieve ‘perfection’. She’s impulsive, she wants to fix everything that needs to be fixed to make sure Tsukasa can live freely, even if it leads to tragic futility.

She… knows what’s best for Tsukasa.

So that’s how she knows her star is going to ask her for a kiss before the words are spoken, Rui captures her lips smoothly and languishingly before pressing down harsher.

Tsukasa’s hands claw her back and her legs lock around the purple-haired girl’s waist, feeling her long hair tickling her knees. Rui loves kissing Tsukasa, being close to Tsukasa, and feeling like Tsukasa is truly hers.

She’ll continue going even if Tsukasa gets sick of her, until she tries to drop Rui, but Rui would still be loyal as the star dangles salvation right before her.

It’s her punishment for her lack of understanding, for assumptions, she wants to be degraded before making everything better.

She’s seeing her as a pillar she’s always wished to cling onto, even if it turns out to be the false image of Tsukasa that she has in her mind. 

Does Tsukasa idealize her as well?

When Rui kisses Tsukasa, she wonders if all she tastes is the bittersweet drops of her lies, of all the screams she’s blocked out of her throat.

The choking urge grows stronger.

So she pulls back only slightly, pushing into plush skin even further as she begins to litter Tsukasa’s neck with kisses, enjoying the soft and airy sigh the blonde lets out.

The feeling is addicting and she needs to get closer and closer and even closer. So she lets her mouth open on her own accord and harshly bites into her shoulder, closer to her neck.

The gasp is delicious, it’s exhilarating.

The blood is also tasty, she wants to eat her while.

Rui would waste nothing, every morsel would be savored, she’d waste nothing. But that is just selfish and she could never do that to Tsukasa, her dear Tsukasa-chan. If she was selfless, she’d offer herself like a gift for Tsukasa to use, like when the nervous system of a male praying mantis breaks down.

Soul to soul, bare skin pressed against bare skin. She’ll rip the scented veil away from her and see a side only she had any kind of privilege to see.

Rui, in comparison, was a dead person with fresh meat and strong bones. A dead woman walking, pleading with her bride to come soon and share a meal with her.

To serve herself on a silver platter so willingly.

Tsukasa’s gasp of surprise and her whimper are savored by Rui as well until she detaches her teeth. This wasn't a bite of love, it was a bite that Rui wanted to be etched on her skin forever.

After that, nothing more happens.

They just breathe, not making any move to change their position or pull away. Rui lets her face rest between the junction of Tsukasa’s neck and shoulder, feeling the stick over her tummy on hers as she sinks in.

“I’ll save you, I’ll save you…” the second repeat is said with more conviction. Tsukasa smiles and would have done so regardless, no matter what Rui had said, as it made her feel loved.

Tsukasa’s flaws just dragged her closer to the burning star.

“You always say that, Rui, but only if you erase all the memories you weren’t in. I’ll sleep soundly for the first time in my life” Tsukasa murmurs, looking off to the side.

How many times will this scenario play out? Rui doesn’t know, but the guilt eats her alive.

She’s confident in telling Tsukasa everything will be okay, keeping her innocence, then blaming it all on her later when she’s dead. Everything is meaningless without Tsukasa, nothing makes sense without her, she cannot do anything right, but the moment she met Tsukasa in the garden—

Does her star think the same? Does she want to take the blame? If the latter is true, Rui won’t let her.

If something is overwhelming to Tsukasa, she’ll explain. Just like Rui, the star also doesn’t understand her own emotions, nor how to process them. They’ll dance together like they did when they were kids, oblivious to anyone who understood social norms, to anyone who viewed Tsukasa’s positivity as something useless.

“Let me help you” she had whispered a long time ago when they laid on the grass, next to flowers with hidden cameras, surrounded by the artificial breeze.

Tsukasa had smiled happily, saying that she’d appreciated it. She didn’t know what Rui was going to help with. And now she was finally going to make that mere wish come true; she was going to keep her promise.

So Rui hugs her with all her might, begging Tsukasa to just let her sink and sink until she cannot crawl back up, leading herself to her own demise.

She won’t let Tsukasa’s kind heart be wasted on her because the blonde was self-destructive in trying to make people happy. Tsukasa was already perfect, she didn’t need to do things that didn’t matter to appease aliens that should suffer for eternity.

Tsukasa looks like she wants to say something, but she keeps her lips shut.

Rui appreciates it.

When they go on stage, Rui is ready, even if the flavorless irritation will persist until her last breath because she can do absolutely nothing right.

Kamishiro Rui was someone not worth saving.

She’s dressed in black and long sleeves with flower lace, and Tsukasa is dressed in a cream pink, her hair holding something that shockingly resembles a wedding veil.

Rui bites her lips with all the strength she finds in herself, letting the ideal of becoming useful for once take over her entire body as she sends Tsukasa a smile.

A smile that her star struggles to return, a hand squeezing hers so tight it might as well be cutting off her blood circulation. She feels herself cup one of Tsukasa’s cheeks, brushing against the fabric on her head, and lets herself imagine they are really in another life.

She can’t fix anything — but she has to believe she can. She’ll destroy everything that she is, without a care for her future, to ensure that Tsukasa is safe without her.

Even if she hates the thought, she should just die.

The microphone is cold in Tsukasa’s hands, but the body on the floor is even colder.

She can’t stop staring at those lifeless eyes, the smile she had flashed staying on her face even as her head slammed with zero elegance on the ground. Rui had been snatched away in an instant, and instead of choosing to accept what had happened, why it had happened, the whole concept of the stage –

Tsukasa wasn’t going to expose the lies Rui had so carefully crafted. She’ll look through the false images that fit through her feverish mind, the mind that gave no signals for her brain to look away from the corpse of her beloved.

She hates her, she hates that Rui neglected the thoughts of a future they could share together, or even an immediate future where they could have died together. She was too lost in performing the show in the present to think about the after-talk.

Did she feel that if she was punished, if she took the fall, that Tsukasa would forgive her? Forgive her for the guilt she now carries because Tsukasa wishes she could have been the one to ask Rui to punish her.

Tsukasa had a hard time keeping a smile, knowing that Rui was so willing to believe she was going to fix everything. But she still kept quiet.

“I didn’t want to turn out like this…!”.

Even when Rui kept unknowingly hurting her, Tsukasa was madly in love with her.

Rui, her protector.

Her protector, Rui, who failed miserably. Her lover who couldn’t fix herself or Tsukasa, the lover Tsukasa will mourn till her last breath.

The screen showcases her ugly sobbing which only spurs the audience on, their cheering an admission of the lack of empathy they have for humans.

Chapter Text

The qilin, the sun deity, Tenma Tsukasa – was someone renowned across the lands. Many people hope from her to grant their wishes, to even catch a glimpse of her blonde to peach hair with its luscious locks tied into a high ponytail.

She was many things to many people, that wasn’t surprising.

But most of all she was curious, and humanity was on the top of her list to find more stuff about. She had even learned what love was through her favorite human.

A human that wanted the power to maintain peace rather than the power to win fights and unnecessary wars.

The tactician has caught the eye of the qilin and not just because of her looks, even though Tsukasa can admit that the tactician was her most strikingly beautiful follower.

Her hair was mostly purple with cyan tints throughout, tied in a high ponytail to get out of the way when she worked. Usually it was accompanied by a yellow headpiece that matched her rectangular earrings. Purples, yellows, blues, browns, greens, were a part of the majorly white outerwear. So not only was she interesting to Tsukasa but she was beautiful too.

These past few days, however, she hadn’t appeared to be at her full potential – maybe that was the wrong word since Rui’s work efficiency hadn’t suffered. Tsukasa wasn’t that prideful to admit she was worried about her girlfriend.

“You’re sluggish” the qilin points out as she follows Rui down the halls. The tactician hums as she steps into her workroom and closes the sliding door once Tsukasa floats in.

But that’s not all she’s noticed. Rui’s been more sleepy as of late and Tsukasa is unsure if she is actually sleeping more or suffering from a lack of it. She’s also noticed that when Rui joins her for walks, she’ll stick to the shady and cooler parts of the paths.

Tsukasa gets closer as Rui sits at her flooded desk, leaning onto her shoulder to try and peer at what she was reviewing.

The pulse she feels as she traces her body mindlessly stops her dead in her tracks

“RUI?” she yelps out, startled, “What’s wrong with you?”. Rui laughs tiredly, clearly amused “Fufu, I’d argue  a lot, but right now I am content”.

“Your heart’s slower, are you dying?! I demand you tell me now if you’re ill!” clawed hands worryingly grip the tactician's shoulders, causing said tactician to hollowly laugh, “It’s probably related to the trigger of my slowed metabolic rate, there is nothing to be considered about. It’s natural for my kind”.

That was correct — Rui was a snake hybrid living among humans. Her eyes tended to be more split and her tongue was slightly forked. Her saliva was also venomous, but thankfully, Tsukasa was immune to it, so she could kiss her beloved human as much as she wanted. Not that it stopped Rui from being overly cautious about that aspect but whatever.

She could even transform the lower half of her body closer in appearance to her reptile counterparts, even if Rui rarely does so.

The qilin’s questioning look spurs Rui to answer her “During these colder times of the year, my body tends to insist I conserve energy. It is a low-energy ‘hunkering down’ called brumation, so like a less intense version of hibernation. I seek warm things from my surroundings, take food in big batches, and other such things”.

Rui explains a few more things, but genuinely seems bored even talking about it.

“But it’s nothing to worry about, Tsukasa-chan” she says as she wipes her lips to be dry and presses a kiss into Tsukasa’s cheek “... I’d argue against that”.

“I don’t need to, I’ve never done that part of my species' lifestyle. Conserving energy for my job doesn’t take priority because I don’t hunt, I’m a tactician, I make strategies for survival, not follow my biological need to” she murmurs, basically waving off any concerns she offers.

Tsukasa doesn’t appreciate this answer at all. Was this why Rui was relieved last year when Tsukasa said she’d be busy during the colder months? This snake!

“I’ll be right back!” she announces before running out of Rui’s room, straight to the emperor. She had nothing to fear as she made demands, lest the greedy human wants to tempt her to take the sun away, and happily gets what she wants.

She even throws in a slither of hope that the crops will be even better this season, so he’s left happy.

When Tsukasa comes back, however, she is not happy. She puffs her cheeks in anger when she sees Rui has gone back to reading the documents — but then again, she did say that she needed to stay right here.

“Rui?”.

“Mmm, welcome back”.

It’s not good enough.

So Tsukasa does what any respected deity such as herself would do — she uses her tail to swipe all of the documents off of Rui’s desk “Tsukasa-chan?!”.

The qilin didn't answer any of Rui’s squabbling until she had dragged the tactician away from her desk and on her feet.

“I got you the week off, you’re already well ahead of your work and your backup plans are in place. Your underlings may not be as brilliant as you but they can follow simple instructions AND I’ll check them while you rest” as she speaks, she digs her finger deeper into Rui’s chest to nag her, hoping this will finally get this stupid snake hybrid to rest!

Rui’s face is confused as she tries to understand the onslaught of information Tsukasa just gave her “What? This is too fast, ah, wait Tsukasa-chan—“.

Her pleas fall on deaf ears as Tsukasa throws her over her shoulder, which causes her to scramble for any kind of purchase for her hands. However, Tsukasa is fast, and soon Rui is tossed on her bed and in her sleepwear.

Her hair was loose and combed by the illustrious qilin, who was now fluffing up pillows and making sure the blankets were of the most perfect condition for something she still doesn’t fully understand.

Rui munches on the fruit Tsukasa had one of the emperor’s servants deliver as the deity finishes before she tells Rui she’ll be back soon and that she better rest.

Rui gives her a wave as she closes the sliding door.

Tsukasa basically acts like her assistant for the next few hours as well as her bodyguard, ensuring no one bothers her sleeping for their silly requests.

And she’s overjoyed once she deems everything taken care of. So she rushes back to the room half expecting Rui to be mulling over some documents.

Thankfully, it seems like she had taken Tsukasa seriously this time.

Rui lies on top of the blankets, arms curled against one another as she’s on her side. Her loose hair fans over the pillow her head rests on, but she didn’t just look at peace because of that. Rui had chosen to shift, trusting that Tsukasa would ensure no one else could enter the room. Her tail was full of beautiful purple scales and her underbelly was teal, much like her hair.

When her golden eyes begin to peer at her, basically pleading in their sleepy state, and they beckon Tsukasa to join her.

So she does once she strips down her more intricate layers of clothing and lets her hair loose as well. She slowly puts her weight on the bed as she watches Rui scoot back and pat the space in front of her. The qilin quickly understands and lies down so Rui could encircle her arms around her waist, humming contently.

“Fufu… so warm”.

After minutes of this, and Tsukasa moving her hands back a few times to rub the scales pressed against her, she asks her girlfriend how she was faring.

“I feel happy” Rui snuggles up closer, bringing her arms tighter around Tsukasa. She must be searching for warmth like she said before, “I’m fed and thriving, and I got my cute mate rubbing my scales. What more could I wish for?”.

“A proper sleep schedule that’s what” Tsukasa snaps back as she feels a laugh coming from behind her “You know this isn’t akin to hibernation, I’m cold blooded after all. I may have been reluctant to fall into this state, but you make it better”.

Tsukasa’s blushing face is hidden away, but her tail pressed between them gives her away. She already got excited at the word mate, happy that Rui felt safe enough to go into a deep sleep and trust that Tsukasa would keep her safe.

She wonders when full snakes brumated if they did so in pairs or not.

It seems almost natural that Rui’s tail eventually begins to wrap itself around Tsukasa’s. The sound is unusual, as the qilin had neither bothered to pay attention before to it, but the smooth sensation is welcoming.

The coil is welcoming, as it brings them closer when it also creeps around her legs, Rui’s face somehow ending up in her hair. The qilin twists a bit so they face each other instead.

The sleepy smile she gets in return makes her heart swoon, this human was way too pretty for her own good.

“Just let me…for a moment…” Rui’s voice fades as her dropping eyelids finally fall shut. The qilin watched in anticipation for the light snores to start before she praised herself in her head “HA HA HA! AREN’T I THE BEST GIRLFRIEND EVER?”.

A few more minutes pass with her just watching Rui sleep and drift further into her dreams.

Tsukasa lets herself press a kiss to Rui’s forehead before tucking herself into her girlfriend’s shoulder, mindful of her horns, and falls asleep with her.

And she is happy to report that by the week’s end, Rui was back to her usual self minus the eyebags. It was still cold, so Tsukasa would have to do her best to make sure Rui didn’t get to that point of exhaustion again.

But she can’t deny that when Rui was more awake in the middle of her brumation, she enjoyed sunbathing with her on the rare day the sun peeked out.

-----------------------------------------

When Tsukasa ascends back to her place in the clouds, one that was magnificent among the other deities' abodes, she already misses Rui.

She does have to go check through all her duties, though, hopefully nothing too urgent. 

“Looks like the so-called renowned qilin was busy this week, wasn’t she?”.

Two deities appear behind her before she can even think about stepping foot into her own place.

A man with black hair that faded into blue with a white and red mask behind him. He had red tassel earrings and a cheeky smile on his face after calling out to Tsukasa. Next to him was a woman with striking ginger hair and two black horns, looking slightly amused at her shocked expression.

“AKITO? AN?” the qilin is startled that she is suddenly caught by her junior deities catching her coming back to the grounds in the sky.

“Don’t look so surprised” makes Tsukasa turn around to see Nene too, looking unimpressed, ”No one heard your morning boasts for a week, of course people got nosy”.

“Well not exactly people,” Akito points out and Nene sighs “You get the so-called point”.

“So who’s the lucky lady that’s captured your heart? A tactician no less!” An snickers, Tsukasa curses the fox deity in her mind, “NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!”.

“Yeah, I don’t wanna hear about her love life, especially since you pulled the spell where we saw her cuddling up to the tactician,” Akito adds on much to Tsukasa’s mortification.

An runs over to her side and pokes her tail “Hey, qilin-senpai, spill the dets, it's been so boring here recently…”.

“I HAVE A RIGHT TO PRIVACY!” she tries to defend herself.

“With how much your voice projects when you talk about your problems, how much is really private” the ginger deity teases.

Tsukasa is older than all of them! Where is the respect?!

“I never thought you’d go after someone I blessed, even to the point they’d try to polish your scales,” Nene comments when Tsukasa turns to him for help, “Especially since you are weirdly respectful… which is surprising but then again, seeing you swish your tail around when thinking about her is already weird enough”.

Tsukasa grips her hair harder in frustration. When had Nene seen that?!

“NOT YOU TOO, NENE! HAVE SOME RESPECT ON MY NAME!” she yells in a desperate attempt to gain just that.

None of her juniors gives that respect to her.

Chapter Text

Tsukasa always enjoyed coming home early, even more so on days she just needed to wind down at the end of the day. The café had been booming with business lately, in a way that left her pleasantly busy and grateful her social battery was so high.

Many people she knew came in today, so there were a lot of hugs and pleasantries being exchanged.

Curling up on the couch as the clock strikes 7 pm with a cup of chai, spiced and warm, she takes a breather. She had worked hard so she could rewind without focusing on anything else at the moment, her thoughts her only company.

She’s just happy to be under a comfy blanket and in fluffy socks as she thinks about heading to bed early so she can wake up earlier the next day to get more errands and stock inventory done, maybe she’d get another plant to tend to.

It makes sense, since her girlfriend and roommate loves gardening. She misses her; it felt like they hadn’t been able to see each other recently. It was neither of their faults, but Tsukasa is allowed to feel this way.

She feels like she hasn’t seen her all week; she misses Rui! She’s happy that Rui has risen above the obvious assumption that someone not fully human couldn’t make a name for themselves, that her brilliant directing ideas were being recognized just like they had been in highschool when they were WonderlandxShowtime, but she fully understood why Rui would whine when she had to take trips.

Her dropped ears and still tail always give it away, she never hides the way they react when it is just them, which Tsukasa finds adorable, and she’s happy Rui places so much trust in her. That was right, Rui has dog characteristics: a tail, a pair of pointed ears on top of her head instead of human ones, pointed teeth, and so on. So Tsukasa had tried to learn early on what signs meant what, not that she necessarily got it right, since the director could be so super sneaky.

She gets a rush of excitement when she hears the lock to their front door being unlocked, followed by a familiar sigh of relief when her girlfriend steps into their apartment.

Once she hears Rui reluctantly putting her shoes in their right place, she yells “Welcome home, Rui! I am in the living room”. She shifts her legs to peer over the cushions as she hears an enthusiastic “Coming!” accompanied by Rui showing up in the living room.

Rui lights up when she sees her beautiful girlfriend, but her smile becomes slightly strained. But Tsukasa decides it must be in her imagination, Rui is just naturally tired after a long day.

So she turns back the right way, taking a sip of her tea that was warm rather than hot, expecting Rui to join her on the couch.

That doesn’t happen.

Rui taps her shoulder as she stands behind the couch, prompting Tsukasa to look back, head leaning on the top of the couch cushion. She thinks Rui is about to ask about her new makeup headband or ask about her day, but the purple-haired woman leans down and licks her forehead. While the blonde is stunned, Rui walks to their bedroom, looking only slightly relieved.

“Huh?!” a hand rushes up to touch her forehead, confused about what had happened.

She knows her hair being on the shorter side, almost like a tomboy cut, makes her bangs a little longer so she might not always see her forehead…

“That doesn’t make any sense!”.

That stunt just leaves her bewildered about what on earth Rui was trying to pull. Was this some sort of elaborate prank? She knows that Rui can randomly lick her cheek or her neck as a display of affection when they cuddle in bed, but this was unprompted.

Apparently, she contemplates for longer than she anticipated, as Rui actually joins her on the couch this time. She had a shower while gone, as evident by the towel on her camisole-worn shoulders, very roughly dried, then combed medium-length hair that had a small teal fade at the end.

“Rui,” Tsukasa begins to ask once it is clear that the purple-haired woman will be doing no such thing, only staring like Tsukasa should already know the problem, “Is something wrong…?”.

She places a comforting hand atop Rui’s, hoping that if something upsetting had happened during the day, she’d confide in her awesome, amazing, spectacular girlfriend (if she does say so herself).

“Did you shower when you got home?” is her first question, which Tsukasa takes great offense to “Of course! You know how important hygiene is to me, what do I smell?”.

Rui’s eyes are still pointing downwards “Yes? I don’t want to explain it”.

Tsukasa’s patience cracks at the obvious invasiveness, but she remains calm, her firm voice reflecting this “You are making it hard for me to understand, you can be direct with me! I know your nose is more sensitive than mine and if–”.

“You don’t smell like me!” Rui rudely interrupts, face a blushing mess, “And it bothers me a lot”.

This side of Rui is unexpected and really cute as she admits what’s bothering her “Eh?”.

“You don’t smell like mine, which sounds weird, but my instincts don’t like it, you reek of others in our home and it’s making me upset” Rui explains “And I don’t know why…”.

“Wait, if I smell that ‘bad’ to her, then maybe she thinks…!”.

“I didn’t do anything!” Tsukasa frantically says “I’d never!”.

Rui dared to chuckle at that “I never meant that, but you do like hugging people as a greeting, don’t you?”

“Oh” comes the lame response, “Fufu, I am not telling you that you can’t, I don’t understand why it’s bothering me all of a sudden. Your scent is the most prominent one”.

It clicks in Tsukasa’s mind that it could possibly be from the little time they spent with each other this past week, so maybe Rui felt drawn to her instincts more as a way to cope?

Aw, she just missed Tsukasa! She isn’t trying to patronize her in any way, of course, but it does make her feel more honored as her cheeks flushed a pretty pink. She also did hug a few other hybrids today, maybe that's why Rui was keen to notice.

“I think it’s because we haven’t been able to spend so much time together this week aside from text messages and sleeping at different times on the bed, isn’t it the same, is it?” Tsukasa suggests and it’s clear at that moment it dawns on Rui why she felt so agitated.

“I… I did miss you a lot, Tsukasa-chan”.

“I missed you too, Rui”.

The pair do nothing but stare at each other lovingly for a solid minute.

“It’s not fair” Rui whines, tail tucked between her legs even if it is hard to do so in a sitting position, still upset that even after this confirmation her emotions aren’t in check “Tsukasa-chan gets home and she smells of all these other mystery people. It’s not my scent, how are people going to know we are together?”.

“You dolt,” Tsukasa laughs, clearly not meaning anything but addressing Rui like that, “I only want to be with you and if anyone tries to make a move on me, I’ll always tell them I am happily in a relationship. Never question my sense of loyalty!”.

As she says what she wants to hear, she moves Rui to lean her body on her, letting her head hit the star’s chest as she strokes one of her ears. Rui’s arms immediately latch around her waist, shuffling up to make the position more comfortable.

“You can be so foolish, you’re the only one that can make me shine the brightest” Tsukasa giggles again when she sees purple ears twitch happily and a matching tail begins to wag faster. Rui really was cute, even if she was cool most of the time. She was also shameless when trying to use her chest as a pillow, but the blonde didn’t mind spoiling her.

So she really isn’t surprised when Rui uses her weight to push her down on the larger part of the sofa, manicured hand pinned under a rougher one. Those golden eyes pierce into her before she registers a lick on her neck and the fluff of an ear tickling the side of her face.

“I love you, let me fix it”.

In response, Tsukasa takes her free hand and threads it through Rui’s thicker locks. It’s also perfect to tug her head so they are eye level. Now it’s amber eyes that keep watch as she pulls her into a kiss.

It’s light at first, but Rui should never be underestimated. Tsukasa lets out a sigh when she feels a harder press on the lips, likely leaving some of her lipstick on Rui’s own lips, but the blonde is too preoccupied with the hands drumming on her shoulders to her neck.

She tries to keep up when Rui adds her tongue into the mix, but she always loses herself too quickly and still doesn’t remember how to breathe properly, even if it has been years since they shared their first kiss.

They’re still as infatuated with each other as when they first started dating.

Rui moves away from a very unwilling and heavy breathing Tsukasa, briefly doing something on her cheek, likely a kiss, before she goes to begin rubbing her face against Tsukasa’s neck in an almost scenting frenzy, taking one of her wrists and rubbing her nose against it as well. Tsukasa laughs at the tickling sensation, something Rui smiles at too, before diving back to tuck herself under her chin.

The nips on her skin cause her face to go up in a batch of scarlet flames, but she just lets Rui do as she pleases, hooking her legs around the other’s waist as she goes to scratch her ears.

So she really is thankful when it just turns into a litter of soft kisses and Rui’s tail is wagging at a more relaxed pace. The purple-haired woman could really go from zero to one hundred percent in mere seconds.

Eventually, she manages to pry Rui off her, the dog hybrid lazily just turning onto her belly, which lets Tsukasa go to the bathroom to finish getting ready for bed. Her skincare routine was long but worth it, so she’ll push through it even while truly sleepy.

She isn’t pleased when she looks in the mirror and sees the purple marks blossoming on her neck and the weird teeth mark on her cheek “Rui…!”. She puts a hand on her neck out of sheer embarrassment, as if covering them would make them disappear.

She should have known she signed up for this when she decided to date Rui and she should have questioned the giddy smile she had on just now when Tsukasa got up.

Chapter Text

A girl who took voyages for fun and work arrives into the lively town square, her companion in her arms. She missed the seas already but she had promised to stay for a while after weekly trips for over a month.

Her name is Rui and her fish friend is Hangyodon.

She has longer side bangs, one purple, one teal, that reach her shoulders while the rest of her hair is tied into a high side ponytail. She wears a sailor cap with a fishcake swirl icon to match Hangyodon as he holds his buddy Sayuri, who was resting on the boat for the day. She wore a sailor-esque outfit with whites, teals, and dark blue lines on the cuffs of her flowy sleeves. Her pants were the same dark blue with yellow belts, and the top of her outfit ended in a way that some of her tummy peeked out.

What made today special was that she was going to attend a mini arts and crafts workshop being hosted by Ena and Kuromi. There were a bunch of flyers being passed around with lovely little drawings on them, and Rui’s crush, Tsukasa, happened to see it while shopping.

Rui had been at the café she worked at the time these flyers were being shared, happily drinking an overly sweet milkshake while Hangyodon was showing her this new figurine of himself, and Tsukasa had excitedly come over and asked if she’d be in town for it.

Rui laughs as she remembers how pleased her crush looked as Rui agreed, even if the purple-haired girl was thinking about whether this could count as a date. When Tsukasa got called to watch her tables and fetch a display tray from Keroppi, who was also calling out to her as well.

Yeah, she was crushing hard, and that made her change her work schedule. Tsukasa was like her anchor, so she is always happy to come back. She’s actually one of the reasons Rui is considering staying on land for longer.

And maybe a little bit because the hugs Tsukasa gives her when she returns, even if it’s only a day trip to deliver inventory, make it worth it.

Most of her hair falls past her shoulders, aside from the two round buns on either side of her head with their red ribbons. A tuff of her hair acts like an ahoge coming off the top of her head, and her bangs help frame her round face. She wears a green vest with an icon with a cloud spouting a rainbow, she has a red tie with a yellow star, and a white apron encasing most of her black pants. Under her vest is a long-sleeved light yellow shirt with the cuffs rolled up.

Similar to Rui and Hangyodon’s sailor hats, Keroppi had a matching red ribbon to match Tsukasa’s. And he is the first one to notice them, tugging on the clothes he can reach from his place perched on the blonde’s shoulder.

She turns around, two trays balanced in one hand, and beams at the sight of Rui. Despite being on service still, she waves enthusiastically before heading to the back of the house. Rui had failed to wave back in time and Hangyodon had the nerve to laugh despite his own failure to talk to other girls.

“You’re also clumsy,” she murmurs as they wait for the duo to come back out, “But you like her clumsiness", She knows Hangyodon means well and that he is a dreamer at heart, but did one of those dreams have to be insistent on finally getting them together? Tsukasa would never like her!

“Hi Rui!” Tsukasa smiles warmly alongside Keroppi, “Hello Hangyodon”. The blonde clearly excited to go if she timed when her service hours ended to coincide with Rui’s arrival.

They two greet them back and soon all of them are on their way to the place clearly decorated by Kuromi and Ena with all the different blacks, browns, and purples.

“I wanted to go on a hike,” Keroppi says from his place on Tsukasa’s shoulder “We’ll go when the weather lets up! The rain hasn’t been too kind, and I can’t show up to work sick!”.

“You could join me and Hangydoon next week for a day trip” Rui suggests, promptly gets a “Yes!”. Keroppi likes swimming and is quite active in sports like Tsukasa, so of course he was going to take this opportunity.

Also, he was acting as a wingman to the dense Tsukasa, but nobody knew that.

Talking about next week’s possible plans makes the journey even quicker, soon being ushered inside by Ena and Kuromi, giving out the basic instructions.

As Tsukasa wanders to a table, Rui hears a familiar laugh.

In one corner, she sees a pink-haired boy with long hair and many cloud clips, Emu, talking to a purple-haired boy, Mafuyu. His arm is stuck out and three bracelets are being added by his boyfriend, an energetic Cinnaroll, and a slowly paced Cogimyun.

Emu sends him a wave as she and Tsukasa sit down. A bunch of beads have been taken from the table in a tray, and they can get more if desired. Once she sees the pale yellow shaped beads in the pile, she knows she has to make a bracelet for Tsukasa.

Maybe she’ll get a nice blush and give her a little thank-you kiss on her cheek, even if it won’t be out of the love she feels for Tsukasa.

Tsukasa says once they settled at a free table, “I am surprised Akito is here too!”.

“She is?” Rui turns around to spot a short ginger-haired girl and Badtz Maru, Yes, with Kohane!”, watching a pale blonde with a white bucket hat fumble alongside CoroCoroKuririn with the beads. Rui smiles “Fufu, it seems our fiery friend finally dared to ask Azusawa-kun out”.

“Unlike some people” comes the quick reply, but everyone at the table hears it. “Sorry Hangydoon?” Tsukasa asks, having not heard him, Rui shuts that down fast “Neh, Tsukasa-chan, let’s start”.

“Mmm!” Tsukasa nods and grabs one of the pre-cut strings. Hangydoon declares he is going to make a small ring for Sayuri by cutting a small piece, and Keroppi simply leans on Tsukasa, enjoying her company.

Hangyodon and his lovable charm encourage Rui to start as well. She goes for the colors Tsukasa likes, the colors that remind me of her beautiful hair. The star beads seem to have been intentionally placed for her.

One by one, she begins assembling the bracelet, making sure to pay extra attention to not break it, even when she feels a shift to the side, nearly making her lean on Tsukasa’s shoulder.

“That’s weird…”.

Both are silent as they work but it is a comfortable silence. For Rui it's because she didn’t want to mess up, likely the same story for Tsukasa and Hangyodon. After all, there were so many options that could be made, so many choices of sparkles and shines.

When she looks over to Tsukasa, she notices that she is leaning toward different purple beads. She had obviously placed all of the ones she wanted to use before placing them on the string.

However, Rui is faster with threading the beads and is nearly at the end of the cord; she uses her own wrist as a base, even if it's bigger than Tsukasa’s, and is happy with what she is doing.

“I hope she likes this gift…”.

The third time she feels the push, she looks down at the culprit, Hangydoon not saying anything while Keroppi stares at him too. He’s lucky she had tied off the end because the push would have knocked her work out of her hands; thankfully, Tsukasa noticed none of the pushes.

"Awe, rats, I an out! I'll be right back Rui!" Tsukasa quickly says before getting up to go the extra supply table and chat with Ena and Kuromi.

Before Rui can ask any questions about why he is trying to get them to fall onto each other… Wait, was she trying to get them to kiss?

The realization dawns on her quickly.

“Now is not the time to try and be a hero to my dreams” she whispers while Tsukasa is gone and to her horror Hangydoon points at Keroppi, “Use your words!”. She knows they both mean well but their silence is part of the guilt, she has no clue otherwise.

Tsukasa happily comes back with a lot more purple star-shaped beads “There, problem solved!”. She slides back into her chair.

“Not the main problem— Ow!” A pinch to his head outta do the trick, but instead, he topples over, not what Rui had intended to do in the slightest, causing her to dodge to the side.

When the purple-haired turns her head to look back at the table, her lips collide with something unbelievably soft and cherry-like. Her eyes go wide when she sees Tsukasa’s eyes slipping shut and a new pressure.

She kisses back, figuring Tsukasa will write this off as a mistake, but she’ll enjoy it while she can. Their two companions gasp, which finally causes Rui to reluctantly move back.

When Tsukasa’s eyelashes flutter, Rui’s heart goes out of its rhythm.

“I AM SO SORRY!” her voice uncharacteristically goes higher and louder but Tsukasa looks really shy “What are you sorry about…? I enjoyed it”.

“You did?” Rui replies, shocked, and Tsukasa nods flustered “Mhm”.

If she liked it then–

“I like you, a lot,” Rui blurts out, taking her chance, “And I am making this bracelet for you, Tsukasa-chan”.

 Hangydoon and Keroppi look at Tsukasa expectantly.

“I am making this bracelet for you too, I like you as well” Tsukasa laughs, almost if she can’t believe what has happened this past minute “Please put it on me!”.

She slips the bracelet onto Tsukasa’s wrist, making sure the elastic doesn’t dig into her skin. As Tsukasa looks at the bracelet now on her wrist, smiling adorably while doing so, she turns to her Hangydoon. “I’m buying you prawn crackers later” Rui declares and gives her friend a high five.

Now she’ll wait patiently for Tsukasa’s gift to her.

Chapter Text

The beach is a safe haven for Tsukasa.

She had met someone important to her here when she was a child, which definitely had something to do with it; mostly, it was because she could take the chance to simply exist here quietly.

The waves crashing onto each other, the smell of salt in the air, and the tranquility she got by just standing on the sand under the moon. Everything made Tsukasa feel safe, like she could take a breath of fresh air without someone behind her criticizing her movements.

Her blunt bangs flow with the wind, the drilled ends of the strands that frame her face and her thick ponytail. She hadn’t bothered to take out her hair; instead she was content to show up after sneaking out in a simple outfit underneath a cloak, which had been discarded, to avoid the guards.

So she sits on the damper sand closer to the shore, knowing damn well that it could be dangerous. In her defense, she is upset at her parents.

The sea always seemed more predictable to her than people.

She thinks it’ll take time to get over it, so she didn’t want to subject anyone to her sour mood. All of this is because of what had happened in a sudden meeting with her family. It was a decision set in stone, but the fact that there was any consideration that she wasn’t getting the chance to reign the kingdom just because of the prejudice of the male heir not automatically getting it was absurd!

Saki didn’t want to be king and Tsukasa had been training her entire life for the position she wanted to take. She wanted to lead their kingdom into prosperity and to be a place where all the residents could smile freely.

There had never been any concerns raised about this agreement, so the fact it came up now that Tsukasa was nearly of age was absurd. She would bet half a leg that it was the old-fashioned members of the council who had caused this stir in the first place.

“I am sorry, Onee-chan. I had no idea people thought like this! Or that Father would even dare to consider!” his brother had said, genuinely astonished once they had both left. Tsukasa had grabbed his hand and reassured him it was not his fault, that he’d never have to do anything he wasn’t comfortable with, before saying she just needed to be alone for a while.

That’s why she had snuck off by her lonesome.

Now she just wanted some company, and it’s like the sea grants her wish. A call of her name and a head poking out from the rocks. When she gets up and turns around, she is greeted with the sight of her girlfriend Rui.

Scales are scattered all over her skin, purple with some teal fades that match her fluffy short hair. Additionally, her ear fins, which usually match the same color scheme, are missing so Tsukasa assumes they are hidden with her hair. She had a white top with a slightly high neck and fluffed-out cuffs at the end of long sleeves. Her shoulders were exposed, which allowed for the scales on her shoulders and the ends of the top, at least from what she could recall, resembled a jellyfish’s leafy tentacles. 

But she also can’t see any gills?

Did she get cursed! Tsukasa doesn’t know how to lift curses, she’s never needed to!!

Gleaming yellow eyes that resemble the moon above them look at her endearingly before she finally reveals the rest of her body. But instead of the octopus arms she had grown familiar with, it's a pair of human legs with pants that match her shirt. She takes a shaky first step before gaining more confidence and reaching Tsukasa’s side.

“Rui?” Tsukasa exclaims, hand hovering as if she was going to grab one of her legs to confirm she wasn’t hallucinating, “What? How– ARE YOU CURSED?!”. Was Rui no longer a lovely merperson? She was already eccentric and Tsukasa loved her for that, not that she wouldn’t accept this change if that’s what Rui wanted to do with her life—

“It’s temporary and it’s not a curse,” Rui assures her, “Fufu, I am still the only lady of the sea to have completed my conquest for your heart~”.

“Ha ha” Tsukasa deadpans to hide the blush from that bold sentence, “So, are they actually human legs?”. She still cannot believe the sight.

Rui confirms this happily “Yes~ I drank a potion that has given me the ability to walk on land for a few hours and I already spent some of that time collecting materials left on this beach, perfect for my inventions”.

“I thought that potions weren’t your expertise anymore?” she questions, tilting her head to the side, which gives Rui the opportunity to cup her cheek “Let’s just say giving tuna to Luki makes him not so sleepy and more eager to help me with this little request of mine”.

She then looks at her more sheepishly, “And I wanted to surprise you since you’ve been busier with your work. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t shown up tonight”.

The princess is happy to know she isn’t the only impulsive one in their relationship.

“Even if you look upset tonight,” Tsukasa leans into the talking girl’s still webbed hands, “So it’s pure luck I am here to cheer you up”.

“So let’s dance” she simply says.

Tsukasa pauses, detaching herself from her girlfriend, “What do you mean?”.

“Dancing relieves stress, right? So let’s dance right here and right now,” Rui repeats herself, “I even had someone supply a speaker with a playlist for our convenience”.

Tsukasa seems hesitant for a moment “Could you really do formal dancing when you still stumble around on those legs like a fawn?”.

“Fufu, you really think we are going to do a waltz or some stuffy ball dance?” Rui smirks and drops Tsukasa’s hand “The dancing underwater is already painful enough because of how I have to present all my tentacles, why would I start abiding by those rules now that I’ve got legs for a few hours?”.

She doesn’t wait for a response before going uphill to grab the hidden speaker. Tsukasa notices that she is still stumbling, but thankfully doesn’t fall face-first into the ground. When she returns, an old speaker in hand, she places it on a safe place on a high rock.

“Let’s dance till we drop dead!” she declares as she presses the play button and thankfully Tsukasa is used to the dramatic flair not to take such a saying literally.

Rui could push the limits; she won’t deny that ever. And Tsukasa doesn’t mind not looking as dignified and well put together when she joins her in her adventures to do so.

To describe it in one word would be easy: the music is lively.

She starts nodding her head to the song, keeping track of the BPM by tapping her finger on her leg, something Rui takes note of happily. 

“There is more than one song,” Rui gleefully informs her, “So we can dance till all those pesky worries and negative emotions slip away”.

Tsukasa happily obliges.

Their dancing isn’t fast or slow, it constantly changes in speed. The movements aren’t what Tsukasa would learn in her dance classes but the proximity gets closer and closer, even if they hadn’t linked arms.

Tsukasa likes to spin so her dress flows. Rui has taken a liking to moving her legs because of the fact she usually has eight arms instead, the ends of her sleeves getting tangled within each other.

There wasn’t a name to put to whatever they were putting down on their makeshift dance floor, and neither of them were communicating to get the other to follow their movements.

They are individually moving, but still dancing together.

The music is nothing like the carefully put-together music they played for large banquets, filled with classic instruments and particular tempos. This song has a lot of focus on percussion with the base drum and snare drum, making it feel much more energetic.

It’s not sensual or inherently romantic; it’s just wild and fun. Tsukasa swings her body to the beat, uncaring if her appearance is more rowdy than how a princess should. Instead of perfectly timed steps and the need to keep your expression professional, it’s unfiltered laughter and steps that sometimes kick the sand up.

The playlist goes on and on, changing beats and melodies, but never changing how free the blonde felt right now. Seeing Rui be a bit more clumsy than her because of her new legs is also refreshing from the usually put-together Rui.

“Tsukasa-chan is enjoying herself, isn’t she?” Rui remarks and Tsukasa can’t help but agree. At that moment, she was just Tsukasa. Rui wasn’t royalty nor did she care about how someone with status should present themselves.

Gosh, the way Rui looks at her as if she is holding the universe in her hands, represented perfectly in those golden hues.

The last song is slower compared to the rest, the solid beat still present but toned down, a melodious atmosphere breaking through once again as Rui takes Tsukasa’s hand in her own webbed one. She lifts her arm and the princess lets herself be twirled.

Rui’s smile as she does a few spins makes her heart ache. Rui looked so happy to be able to do these silly dances with her. She eagerly lets her hand slip out of the colder hand, changing positions so she could also twirl her, even if Rui didn’t seem to understand how to move around.

The way she stumbles brings them closer so they both don’t fall face-first into the sand, a notably growing concern. Not that Tsukasa would have minded, she feels indebted to Rui once again, it’s as if her girlfriend could read the thoughts of a quite stubborn princess.

She could knock down her defenses and embrace the real version of her, one that didn’t have to fear about being hurt or used for someone else’s gain.

So, as the song ends, she catches her off guard and hugs her, scaled arms reacting quite quickly to wrap her in their own embrace.

There is no more music playing, allowing Tsukasa to whisper something only her lover should hear “I love you, thank you for helping me”. No one else was around but she still wanted only one person in the whole world to know.

The squeeze on her hips and the mess of unruly violet hair dropping onto her shoulder is enough proof that Rui appreciates the words.

Tonight made her forget everything, only for a little bit, but she had desperately needed that distraction, that moment where she felt so endlessly loved.

And as long as it was safe, she would love to take the human Rui for a stroll around town.

She’d stock up on tuna to give to Rui so she could bribe the illustrious Luka to make a position that’d last for longer. She wants to show Rui the wonders of the land, even if they appeared mundane to those found underwater.

She wasn’t so prideful to admit that she wanted to spend more time with Rui, she can be herself with the merperson, she didn’t have to worry when she was with her. Rui should be lucky that she holds such a high position in Tsukasa’s eyes.

Chapter Text

Wrong.

The sky looked like it was about to rain. No one was around.

Everything was wrong.

It’s silent in the ruins, a battle fought not long ago in the surrounding area. No one had come here and neither of the women lying against the rock made any move to leave.

One of them couldn’t, the other refused to do so.

The feeling of dread was ever so present.

“Tsukasa-chan, tell me a story” are the first words said after a long time. The knight hadn’t spoken a word for a long time, instead choosing to focus on the sorcerer’s moving heart, the beats becoming her greatest source of comfort in the moment.

“Why?” Tsukasa asks, to which Rui replies, “I just want to hear you talk, is that selfish? I really adore your voice”.

“And I don’t adore that silver tongue of yours,” Tsukasa laughs, “But I suppose I could indulge you like I always do”. She lets one of her gloved hands reach toward the sorcerer’s hair, refusing to move from her place tucked against Rui’s chest, head pressed where her heart is located.

Rui hums at the caress. She always liked it when Tsukasa played with her hair. Why should it be any different right now?

Her long violet hair wasn’t in its usual bun at the back of her head, decorated in a braid wrapping around it, it was loose and free. It sprawls out on the surface behind her and her bangs are swept to the side in a clean swipe. The teal in her hair shone wonderfully in the moonlight.

Her monocle was nowhere to be seen.

Well, that was just what she chose to remember before tucking herself against Rui’s colder body. 

“Rui, do you remember the first time you called me beautiful?” she asks “I still do because it was the first time you told me you liked me for who I was”.

She and Rui were in their last year at the academy together. Tsukasa likes to reminisce on that time when everything was a bit simpler and she was freaking out over actually liking someone, even worse, that it was love at first sight when Rui was sleep deprived and with messy hair the first time.

A disheveled appearance wasn’t enough to throw off Tsukasa of all people.

“Fufu, how can I ever forget?” Rui answers a little later than Tsukasa would have liked “You were so cute back then, before you took a liking to challenging me to duels, not that Tsukasa-chan isn’t cute right now~”.

Tsukasa hears a wheezed breath “But I’d like you to tell me as if I have forgotten. What happened?”.

“I found out you liked girls, so I thought I needed to change my appearance so you’d think I was a girl you’d want,” she admits “Because I saw you talking to another girl from the knight course…”.

That girl was Asahi and she wasn’t even in any of the same classes as Tsukasa, but she had noted the way she and Rui were interacting. Rui had never been like that when they talked so she was led to the conclusion that maybe Rui’s type was girls who presented more femininely.

Three weeks and gradually increasing interactions, here she was trying to get any hint of romantic interest like a maiden in need of saving. She was the knight!

“So I asked Mizuki to help me look more feminine, or more like tips for me to follow since we bunked together” she lets herself clutch the front of the sorcerer’s clothes lightly “I thought that maybe growing my hair out from it’s pixie cut would make me someone prettier in your eyes, so maybe we could be more than friends”.

She recalls that Mizuki was confused since she had never indicated she was unhappy with her appearance. Tsukasa wasn’t against it, but she tended to like being more masculine, like how shorter hair was easier to maintain “It was a dumb reason, but I was too engrossed in this new feeling to care, and I had final exams the next week”.

In the end, she gave her a few accessories for her hair and lent her some makeup, since Tsukasa didn’t own much; you don’t wear makeup on the battlefield after all.

As well as when fighting against more biased classmates who thought any girl wasn’t worthy of making it far in the knighting ranks, their assumed privilege made it hard to do much without being looked down upon.

“I should have never assumed that just my appearance would draw you in, but you liked me for who I was” Tsukasa continues, remembering when she deliberately ran into Rui when she had studied late at the library.

In the hall where it was just them, a moment where Tsukasa could make Rui look at her and maybe garner interest for something beyond their blossoming friendship.

The accessory that stood out the most was the rose hair clip secured in her shorter hair, the peach hue near the bottom of where the clip lay, helping it pop out more.

“And she knew who you were the entire time!” Tsukasa ignores Rui’s chuckle, “So when I showed up in front of you, all you said was that I looked as beautiful as the day before”.

“But you certainly found it amusing that someone aiming for the highest position a knight could hold was doing so much to impress you, so much that you launched into a whole tirade of compliments”. To say Tsukasa was beyond mortified was something else, especially when Rui affirmed that she had wanted to know more about the virtuous knight who was surely destined to shine the brightest.

“Tsukasa-chan was trying so hard for my attention when I only saw her,” Rui says when Tsukasa retells the embarrassing confession the sorcerer gave after that wall of text blurted from her mouth "She never needed to change because I feel for who you were already".

“Then you fell down the stairs after trying to sound cool” Tsukasa adds on, “Or did you forget how I helped you up and you had a bloody nose?”.

She knows Rui didn’t forget.

She laughs, but Tsukasa doesn’t join her. Not only was the sorcerer’s laugh hollow – but her heart had begun slowing down. Tsukasa’s hand clutches the gray fabric that had been drenched in a crimson Tsukasa had no power over.

The knight desperately wished that they were talking together, reminiscing in this moment, in the comfort of their shared bed. They’d continue talking as the night drifted away from them or until Tsukasa would notice the time and force them to go to sleep, letting the sorcerer trap her in her thinner arms.

Tsukasa would feel safe and so utterly loved like she always did in those moments away from everything else. Tsukasa would rather lose herself in those emotions than focus on the present, but at the same time, she couldn’t afford to.

Rui was dying and no medical aid could stop that fate from happening. The corruption so visible on her skin was only further proof of this and somehow this information reached the enemy side.

She could put pressure on the wound all she wants but it would be useless, just like how she was right now, all she could do was stay by Rui’s side.

It was too soon. For someone accustomed to death and killings, it was rather strange for this to feel so different.

The sorcerer was isolated during the large-scale attack today and everything went downhill from there. The wound was irreversible and the cracks of black crawled up Rui’s neck, jaw, hands, literally unaware of how fast her mana was getting sucked up.

If only she had come to these ruins sooner, if only Tsukasa had been here to help her. Fate could have been put off for even a moment longer.

Time, Tsukasa was frantically grasping for more time to try and fix this, to let Rui have the chance to live. Tsukasa would let Rui stab her through her heart with the sword she fought vainly with; she’d die a thousand deaths to ensure Rui’s life would prevail, so sacrificing herself isn’t something out of the question.

It was unjust, it wasn’t like Rui deliberately brought the curse on herself; she was a victim of a ritual when she was a kid taken away from her parents.

All the research and conquests she took with Rui to find any clue to a cure, despite the foreign treks and the monstrous trials that awaited them every time, were futile in the end.

Tsukasa hadn’t been able to protect someone so so important to her.

Was she even worthy of her position in the knights?

The heartbeat gets slower again, making her freak out even more so.

“Don’t die, you can’t die,” Tsukasa starts begging, a pale neck soon becoming damp with tears. “I don’t want you to be gone, Rui! I am too attached, how am I supposed to live without you by my side?!” she finally lifts her head up, willing the tears to stop so she isn’t looking at Rui with blurry vision.

She’s battered and she doesn’t like it. Sure, when it's by her hand for training it’s fine because she’d never do something life-threatening and she treats it right after, Rui would do the same, but that wasn’t the case here.

Her stomach just drops at seeing her ragged breathing.

She is one of the top knights, she isn’t used to being so vulnerable. But then again, this was her dying lover; she wouldn’t be human if she weren’t in anguish right now “You’re leaving me…”.

“Don’t think like that,” Rui smiles wobbly, the strength in her hands gradually disappearing but she is using the last spurt of energy to hold Tsukasa’s warm cheeks in them, “It’s just like every night when we close our eyes, you’ll wake up nice and refreshed”.

Her hands are too cold, way too cold.

“But you won’t wake up!” is the response never uttered as Rui weakly presses their lips together, the iron smell and taste persisting as Tsukasa hopelessly kissed back.

She was scared, so she hid herself in Rui’s neck once again when they parted, desperately seeking out any proof of the fact she was still alive. Rui was scared too but she was still being so brave for her lover who didn’t deserve it.

“Good night… Tsukasa-chan” the thumps are so sparse, “I love… you…”.

And then it’s gone, no more soothing noise pressed against her ear.

Just like that, no more heartbeat. Her only source of comfort as she begged in her mind to any deity that would listen to her pleas to take away Rui’s pain, even if it stemmed from her mistakes. She’d take on any punishment deemed necessary for the exchange as long as Rui lived.

They were left unheard, the deities playing a cruel trick on her.

“Sweet dreams, Rui…” Tsukasa lets herself cry at the sight, lifting her head to see the unfocused dead eyes, the lack of a chest rising and calling, and the eerie quietness that will soon take over once more.

Rui was gone.

Rui was gone and everything was unfair!

She hugs her lover’s body tighter, swearing that she’ll kill whoever took advantage of her on the field and whoever sold the information personally. She’d make it hurt, she’d make it last excruciatingly long and smile manically if they even dared beg for forgiveness.

Her wrath wouldn’t be so merciful; it’d be merciless.

It is hours later when the search for Chevalier Tenma and Specialist Kamishiro concludes. Rui lies dead and bloodied while Tsukasa clutches her in a tight hug, seemingly not having any indication that she had left the sorcerer once she found the corpse.

The last moments they shared are for Tsukasa only.

And to this day, the knight always shows up with a bouquet of lilies every month, chatting the whole time with a gravestone, hoping Rui was there with her.

Chapter Text

Tenma Tsukasa was born a human.

Tenma Tsukasa still retains a human brain; therefore she could still be considered a human.

But Tenma Tsukasa, after being brought back from the verge of death, was no longer human.

The privilege was not hers anymore. The day she had stepped out into that battle, she had not been prepared due to a multitude of sudden factors no one had accounted for going wrong or even being there.

If only she had been stronger, been worthy of calling herself a star.

She remembers her name being yelled through the earpiece and something piercing two limbs at the same time – then darkness and cold chills.

Tsukasa had become a biomechanical humanoid. It had taken over a year for her to wake up as Rui did everything in her power to save her, even if it made her not fully human. It was the only way when her body wasn’t responding to any kind of medication, Tsukasa could recall the sobs when she had fully woken up to thousands of sobbed apologies.

The moment she was told, the very moment she had woken up after barely responding to the scientist’s attempts for over a year, she hadn’t fully realized how much she had changed.

Her goals were still the same, her body just wasn’t. She could still be the hero the public needed, even being stronger than she previously was.

The feeling of the metal clashing with her skin, she initially couldn’t find anything wrong with it. Rui had saved her. She still had her hair and her eyes; she looked the same because the metal had been matched to her skin.

But then she realized how much she had lost. Some days she focused more on particular things, which is why today she wound up in the kitchen.

Tsukasa could smell many scents, but she could no longer taste anything. Which doesn’t make any sense because they should be connected, but she doesn’t think too hard about it anymore.

She can’t change anything, so why try? She actually could change things when she went to stop careless villains, when she actively made the world a better place.

She misses enjoying food, planning out meals to share and enjoy with her family, and she misses the texture and taste of ginger-fried pork melting on her tongue.

Tsukasa laughs to herself as she peers into the oven, watching her timer tick down to signal when to take this batch of baked goods out of the oven.

She had made a lemon cheesecake, chocolate eclairs, macaroons of varying flavours, and now she is finishing off with some vanilla cupcakes. She knew all the recipes she loved to make by heart and wondered why she had even put off her baking hobby for so long.

Tsukasa feels like nothing has changed, except she can’t taste test something that wasn’t pre-approved.

As she hears the timer tick down, she also hears the sound of footsteps approaching the base’s kitchen.

She first sees purple shaggy hair and a teal strand accompanied by an awful rattail. Sometimes she just let her hair loose, which Tsukasa preferred immensely. She was missing her signature white coat and seemed to have come in for just some coffee, not expecting to walk into Tsukasa’s baking frenzy.

This was the scientist, Rui. Someone dear to her, who saved her, put her life on hold so Tsukasa could get her second chance despite people telling her that nothing would come from it.

“Eh, Tsukasa-chan, I gave you the day off. Why aren’t you in your room–” Rui asks, looking curiously at all the newly washed dishes and the few accessories in bowls on the table, “Oh, what are you making?”.

“I’ve made a few things, but first I made cheesecake,” Tsukasa says, fanning her hands over the freshly baked cupcakes, “It’s lemon-flavored, but I’ve never been a big fan of lemon”.

Rui looks like she wants to peer over, so she does, her height allowing her to do so. She gets a whiff of the vanilla Tsukasa that she can still smell and smiles. Likely because she hadn’t seen Tsukasa bake in a long time.

“So why did you make it lemon-flavoured? Because to me all of this looks like stress baking, Tsukasa-chan. That’s at least 18 cupcakes, I didn’t even know we had that type of mould” Rui supplies, “Not that I mind, if you won’t eat the cheesecake, I’ll happily do so fufu~”.

“I can smell the lemon” is her curt response and it doesn’t help with Rui’s confusion. It’s like the atmosphere shifts abruptly around them. Tsukasa feels her stomach sink as she recalls why she even felt the pull to do this hobby today.

“No, I just focused on something today that made me want to bake” she clarifies, “Maybe I dreamed about an old memory, dreamed of the sweetness on my tongue, and about feeling full”.

Rui gives her a quizzical look, unsure of where she was going with this.

“I miss tasting food, I know I don’t need to anymore, but I miss it” Tsukasa’s voice goes strangely flat at that, as if saying it out loud is what made that condition a reality.

Rui looks heartbroken at that, her lips falling apart into a gasp, eye contact established immediately.

It wasn’t that sudden, was it? Most meals everyone shared here didn’t involve her eating and most energy she got was from small cubes and electricity. She has to be careful that everything is charged and that she doesn’t damage her throat or fry her brain, a process Rui had taught her.

Maybe she was still fully human to Rui, to everyone around them, even if she was the one who changed her body. Tsukasa wished that was the case.

Or did she?

What she didn’t expect was for Rui to pull her close, nearly yanking her off her feet due to their height difference, resulting in being forced to tiptoe, and Tsukasa’s arms being awkwardly pinned to her sides.

“I am sorry” is what she says, but Tsukasa tries to put a stop to that train of thought immediately “It’s okay, Rui. You saved me”.

Clearly Rui didn’t share the same sentiment, didn’t share the same sense of accomplishment that was to be expected fusing metal and human tissue “It’s not okay, I am sorry I couldn’t do more, I am sorry I failed you”.

Those words let the hug linger for longer, the android putting her arms around Rui to replicate the action. Tsukasa never wants Rui to feel like letting her live, for letting her continue her dream of helping those who couldn’t save themselves was something to feel any kind of guilt over.

Tsukasa just selfishly wanted to feel a little more human; she should just keep her mouth shut if it’s going to remind Rui of what had transpired over the year she slept.

She doesn’t know what to say and Rui looks like she’s holding back from saying something else, unknowing if she’ll rock the boat even more by simply speaking.

Ding, ding!

The timer goes off for the oven and Tsukasa uses this chance to detach herself and grab the cloth to retrieve the cupcakes. The hot air doesn’t affect her as she takes out the tray, turns the oven off since she has no more baking plans for the day, and sets the molds down onto the island.

The buttercream is in the fridge and the sprinkles are ready to be poured.

But she isn’t going to make this waiting time an excuse for Rui to go back to blaming herself for Tsukasa being alive, for giving Tsukasa a second chance at life, which she’ll forever be eternally grateful for.

Even with the drawbacks, she’ll suck it up. She doesn’t want this brief moment to turn into a bigger thing.

“Enough of that. You can be my test tester for now” Tsukasa really isn’t keen on making Rui do anything for forgiveness, because nothing could ever fix something Rui did as a solution, but she wants to appease her guilt even just for a little bit in the moment.

Rui nods and obediently sits on one of the barstools next to the island. She seems to be looking at the undecorated cupcakes that are still cooling and tells her that she isn’t going to try them until she’s finished decorating.

At least with decorating, Tsukasa didn’t need her sense of taste to do some kickass visuals.

“Be grateful I am doing sweet treats and not veggie pot pie,” she remarks, “and that I decided to do baking in the first place, I could have tried making all kinds of salads like sunomono”.

Rui grimaces at those words, likely imagining all the cucumbers in the sunomono. The scientist lights up, albeit hesitantly, as if she were acting, when she takes out the chilled lemon cheesecake she started with, and then she patiently waits for Tsukasa to cut her a slice.

Tsukasa smiles when Rui takes a bite, watching as the usually serious woman just really enjoys the cake. She gets a better look, noticing her unwashed hair and the eye bags being more prominent than last week.

But she doesn’t comment on them; instead she feels jealous that Rui’s body shows those effects. She misses even the crappier parts of being fully human.

“How does it taste?” she questions, hoping that the fact she couldn’t taste test anything and had to put more hope into the measurements than she ever would in the past.

Rui clasps her hands back together “It’s creamy and full of that sweet zesty lemon, and the crust crumbles with it perfectly. It’s rich but in such a good way; it’s balanced brilliantly, Tsukasa-chan!”.

“Ha ha! Since when were you an aspiring food connoisseur?” Tsukasa laughs, “But I am happy you’re enjoying the cake, get ready for the next dishes!”.

“I must be in a happy dreamland~” Rui hums as Tsukasa reaches back in the fridge to grab some of the eclairs she made “Oh what generous act must I have done to receive a reward tenfold!”.

Rui always knows how to make her laugh; she now can’t stop smiling. She just can’t feel if her cheeks are hurting or not.

At least someone else could enjoy the taste of food, even if she couldn’t anymore. Perhaps she should call Nene and Mikuo too so they could indulge.

But for now, she is more than content with Rui – or well this version of Rui who doesn’t feel guilty just by looking at her.

Chapter Text

The Primatemps café was perfect for rainy days and two college students who didn’t want to do the final preparations to go out until the real world. They’re both a week away from receiving their last certifications, despite being in different courses, and neither of them are in a rush.

Unless someone counted the rush Nakayama was in to finish her hot chocolate, the one Shirafuji had bought her. Strands of her hair keep nearly falling into the cup because she insisted on getting the largest cup when she found out she didn’t have to pay, but Shirafuji didn’t mind. Her bob wasn’t even that long.

It’s peaceful, the pit pattering of the drops on the window a comfort she has always enjoyed. 

“Nakayama-chan, you’re slurping” Shirafuji says, sipping from her own tea, “Shut up!”.

Each of them has a book in hand, one recommended by an up-and-coming bookstore clerk, and Shirafuji enjoys stopping them every once in a while to talk about certain chapters. Most people would find it annoying, Nakayama says that she isn’t spouting bullshit so it warrants her stopping.

To other people, it may look like they are on a date, but Shirafuji knows better. She’s a lesbian and Nakayama was as ‘straight as a ruler’ but hadn’t bothered to find anyone. Shirafuji couldn't judge her for it.

Well, with Souji, Shirafuji was the problem, and that’s why she broke it off before she made the black-haired girl miserable. So she also wasn’t looking for a relationship.

Her heart, when being near Nakayama, tells a different story, but she refuses to acknowledge any changes. Maybe it’s just because Nakayama was grumpy, even if that logic doesn’t make sense to her either.

There was a dull ache whenever Nakayama said a guy looked cute. But she ignores it.

“I wish I had a beer,” Nakayama sighs dramatically “But I suppose hot chocolate is a good enough alternative". She was always looking for an excuse to drink and it just reminds her of when Nakayama took her for her first drink. She knows that Nakayama will ask for a refill, so her complaining isn’t taken seriously.

Stubborn, that’s who Nakayama was. It still makes her wonder why she approached her that day in the library in the first place. Some purple-haired clearly nobody with low pigtails, wondering what she was going to do with her life

“Fufu, I never took Nakayama-chan to be the type of person to do day drinking" Shirafuji teases, causing Nakayama to tell her not to focus on one thing. She lets herself laugh at Nakayama’s annoyed face.

Two years have passed since they first met and she knows Nakayama isn’t really that annoyed with her. She would have left the café if she had been, Nakayama won’t tolerate people who piss her off.

It’s something she admired; the blonde was able to go into life headfirst and Shirafuji felt like she didn’t even know how to start hers. She wishes she were less of a doormat, even if she wasn’t sure she’d classify herself as one in the first place.

They go back to reading, even if Shirafuji was the one rereading, it’s how she knew Nakayama would enjoy it. She never wanted to admit it, but she heavily enjoyed cheese romance novels, and the gasps Shirafuji heard periodically were a good enough indication she was right.

She liked Nakayama’s reactions; from when she tried to hide her pouts to when she tucked her hair behind her ear so it wouldn’t get in her eyes to when–

“Oi!” Nakayama snaps her fingers in front of Shirafuji, causing her to blush from how easily her mind slipped away, “Why so surprised? Did you read a spicy part of the book and let your mind drift elsewhere? I didn’t take you to be that kind of girl”.

Oh, her eyes could make her suddenly seem so darn attractive! The way their amber shone at her with such intent.

“I would never recommend a book like that or even read it!” she stammers, clearly flustered by such a question. This gets Nakayama to chuckle “Of course I know that, I am just messing with you. I want you to explain this part to me here like I am five”.

How blunt, but Shirafuji wills her scattered thoughts to calm down and explain what had happened to a more than attentive Nakayama.

The plotline is inherently cheesy, but at least neither of them was reading this during their lectures; she thinks it’s okay to indulge in more silly things. It’s actually a girl’s love novel, one that had been rising in popularity in these slightly more progressive days, that doesn’t seem to be catered to a male audience.

The protagonist is trying to break free from an arranged marriage and they were at the pinnacle of the novel where the protagonist was scared to leave with the love interest. There is hesitancy, there is irrational fear, and questions on if she should just suck it up and like a boy instead.

Shirafuji’s heart aches with familiarity in the words, and perhaps her perspective allows Nakayama to become more immersed in the universe. She even leans closer to see which lines Shirafuji points to, head nearly leaning on her shoulder, her noises of interest loud and clear. She hastily pushes up her glasses to focus herself. This was normal to feel in a friendship. Why was she overthinking such a small thing?

“Do you feel like her?” she suddenly asks, looking toward her face in a way that Shirafuji could have easily stolen a kis–

“In a way,” she replies “But not exactly, it’s all about conforming to what is seen as the right way to love, even if love comes in many forms”.

She explains a bit more and she hopes that Nakayama moves away a little bit. She does and Shirafuji’s heart goes back to its regular beat.

Then their tranquility is broken by a loud yawn from Nakayama.

“Ah, can we take a break? I swear I’m interested,” she stands up and stretches her arms over her head, “I just really gotta take a piss”

Shirafuji blinks, not at the crude part, Nakayama has never cared about telling people whether she was interested in something or not. She’s even had teammates in projects Nakayama couldn’t go solo on approach her to see if she could get the blonde to be nicer to them.

As if they see her as a dog and Shirafuji had the leash. They wouldn’t make it in the real world if they were complaining in college.

The purple-haired woman feels like dropping her entire face into open palms and screaming out of pure frustration. Instead, she clutches a hand to her chest, why was she feeling like this?

“So, are you actually looking for a place together?” Yuriko snaps her out of her thoughts, arms crossed with a notepad in one hand. His sage bangs nearly cover all his eyes so she concludes that being an apprentice here while going to classes must be hard work. He had just started working here too.

Shirafuji pauses before speaking, “It’s a good offer and I am sure my parents will be relieved I’m finally moving out. The benefit of rent isn’t bad either. Nakayama-chan already found a good unit”.

She can still smile warmly thinking about how Nakayama said she didn’t care if any rumors came from this because she was a lesbian and Nakayama wasn’t, how comforting those words were to hear, but she doesn’t tell Yuriko that.

He raises an eyebrow “Are we not going to talk about the glaring issue?”. He only gets a confused look in return “Did I somehow break one of the rules here? Or did Nakayama-chan do something I am not aware of?”.

Instead, Yuriko proposes a question “Do you like her?”.

Did Shirafuji like her like that? She might, but she never fully understood how relationships worked, how others last so long and knowing what to do.

Holding hands, going on dates, kissing the blonde… were those things she wanted? Was she developing a crush? It felt different than her last one on Souji, so she isn’t sure and definitely won’t act on anything. It had been so long since her and Souji, yet here she was.

She certainly wasn’t beating any stereotypes.

Yuriko interrupts the silence as a flustered response, “Oh, you’re screwed, you’re mega screwed”. 

She throws her hands in front of herself, mindful of everything on the table, as a form of defense “Yuriko, that’s not why I accepted! I don’t like her like that!”.

“But you’re beginning to” he states as a matter of factly, almost smugly, “Well, I’ll leave you with that thought. I gotta attend to the other tables without lesbian crises”.

And somehow, those last two words are when Nakayama decides to come back after finishing in the bathroom.

Talk about coincidental timing.

She frowns when she sees Shirafuji avoiding eye contact and concludes Yuriko had something to do with it as she sits back in her seat “If he gave you trouble, I can kick his ass”.

“Nakayama-chan, you’re too hasty. Yuriko was just concerned about me” Rui holds her cup a little tighter “It’s just something I need to figure out”.

"You’re friends with him?” she asks and Rui finally makes eye contact again “Fufu, since childhood”.

Unbeknownst to her, Nakayama feels a strange hint of jealousy “Damn, I still don’t know everything about the elusive Shirafuji”.

“Do you want to know more?” Shirafuji near stutters out and Nakayama responds as if that is the most obvious thing in the world, something even stupid people could understand “Duh. I want to help you out when you’re down too”.

Now Shirafuji is the one to raise an eyebrow and push up her glasses.

“You uh looked stressed, I thought hanging out today could help,” she admits, quite embarrassed “Because that’s what friends are supposed to do, right?”.

Shirafuji hopes her heart isn’t beating too loud, and that any very new anguish she feels at them being referred to as friends goes away.

She cannot be sleigh, she refuses to be. She needs to get back on her feet without a relationship otherwise it’ll end up like her and Souji again.

“You can talk to me about I dunno anything” Nakayama snarls when she hears Shirafuji laugh “Damnit, cut me some slack, I am trying here!”.

“Hmm okay. I’ll keep it in mind” Shirafuji answers, hoping it is enough to appease Nakayama from looking further. “I am sorry, Nakayama-chan, but even I don’t know what my feelings are right now” she thinks, nearly sorrowful as she takes another sip of her tea, “Shall we pick up where we left off?”.

“Oh definitely, I’d rather do this than proofread that stupid farewell document,” Nakayama complains “I am already ahead of the deadline but still…”.

“Nakayama” the purple-haired woman says with no honorific, tone holding an icy new chill.

“Hey don’t switch up on me! I am taking a well-needed break!” Nakayama tries to act tough but the way she clutches the book says otherwise. Shirafuji laughs and lets the threatening tone drop, opening another page and beginning to read.

She won’t dwell on her feelings, for now she’ll just simply exist with Nakayama.

Years later, when she and Nakayama are in their mid-20s, sleeping in the same futon because they have been putting off buying another one for a long time, she realizes how much she likes Nakayama.

How much she really really likes Nakayama Tsukasa.

And how much she wishes that day could have been a real date, even if she knows Nakayama still looks for the man she comes home giggling about while drunk.

She can imagine Yuriko smirking and saying "I told you so, Rui". He'd probably say so the next time they meet up.

Shirafuji Rui was screwed.

Nakayama just kept sleeping and snoring loudly, unknowing of the raging hangover she'd have the next morning.

Chapter Text

Rui always notices a princess dressed in pink and white, with bows littered all over her.

Her dress was frilly and lacey, little bows on the bottom of her knee-length dress, the cardigan making her look cozy. A large pink bow sat near the top of her head, the sides with transparent pink lace and pearls hanging in a chain from the center. Some of the fabric was floral in nature. Rui had seen more and more details when she walked past her on her way home.

A decorative parasol is closed and next to her chair, one that Rui has seen her hold with a certain elegance; every accessory is always picked out with intent. She’s seen her showing it off with the white handle ring.

But the first time she met her was at a show she decided to go to on a whim.

For the show, she had worn a pink coat with fluffy white cuffs and collars. The theatre had been cold, but she still wanted to dress stylishly, even if most of the night was dark. That was what Rui noticed after her booming voice.

Rui wonders what she is like on stage, which may seem out of place until she explains it.

After that show, the girl stood out to her in any crowd and she perhaps lives in the area, but Rui also thinks that she might have at least stolen a glance at such a pretty girl. There was nothing wrong with thinking someone was cute and Rui literally cannot get her out of her head when she sees her daily.

She knows more about the hime gyaru substyle because she wanted to find a way to connect, all thanks to the rambling she said to the fashion expert Mizuki, which was even worse because her boyfriend overheard.

Rui was not a hime gyaru, but she did follow another substyle. 

She has v-bangs and a wolf cut, which she liked to twirl when she was nervous, her purple and teal hair quite out of place with everything else.

Everything she has is monochrome, and she likes it that way. Although it wouldn't be shocking to see her in the most atrocious color combos when in her loungewear. Her flatforms, her fishnets barely visible underneath her skirt, and her choker are all some kind of black. She has silver in her belt with its little hoops that were sliding down a bit on her waist, earrings, and a choker paired with a thin chain, and her gothic t-shirt that was a little ripped had some white scattered across the graphics. She didn’t have the sleeves over her hands, however.

But she highly doubts this mystery girl will care that they dress differently, that isn’t even why she wants to approach her, even if she was cute. She wanted to know about the show idea the blonde was rambling about to her friends once they left the theatre.

So today, when she sees her outside a café without anyone across from her, she decides to take her chance, she’s going to talk to her.

“Why am I so nervous?”.

She perks up when Rui is near her table, actually noticing her in a way that shocks Rui quite quickly. She notices more details as she freezes up in front of her.

Her blonde hair was always curled at the end with her peach hues. It’s usually in a half-up, half-down hairstyle that cascades down her back, with a small bun on the back. Quite voluminous. Her makeup was even clearer up close, helping shape her baby face and big eyes, the soft color of pink on her very kissable lips.

“Can I help you?” the gyaru girl smiles at her, all warm, it makes her fuzzy—

And makes her fail in asking her for her number, makes her fail in asking her if she likes shows.

“Do you know when the next train comes? I am going in…” she lists the description and the requirements, much to the confusion of the blonde “Oh no, was she expecting something else? I can’t go back though…!”.

She walks off quickly, and honestly, she wants to turn back, but her anxiety shot up through the roof the moment she smiled at her.

“Damnit!” she curses to herself, a few people passing by still looking at her frustrated face “I have to go back”.

-----------------------------------------

The blonde girl sits on the chair bewildered after that interaction and a little upset. Her name was Tsukasa and she had no idea what the other girl’s name was.

She finally got that cute, mysterious girl to talk to her, but all she did was ask about the trains and run off! She pouts and leans her head on her cheek, looking at the exit the girl took.

She thought for sure her outfit today was one of her best! Yet the girl was so flustered and much cuter up close to the point she was calling one of her siblings about it. It had been Saki but he passed the phone to Kanade while eating his share of cup noodles.

She’s rambling to him about all her accessories, all the cute mannerisms she’s picked up with her fidgeting, waiting for her card to be renewed, and she wants to know more about her. She wonders if she likes shows, likes other cute things that aren’t part of her style.

“She has purple hair!” she sighs, sipping her milkshake carefully “It doesn’t even fit with the rest of her clothing, although I guess you probably wouldn’t pick it up”. She didn’t mean it in a mean way. Kanade wore sweats most of the time.

“Wait, would you say it's like a goth kind of clothing?” Kanade’s voice comes through the phone. Tsukasa didn’t even know they were hanging out “It’s a gyaru sub style because she’s definitely a goshikku gyaru”.

There is a moment of silence.

“Are you at that cafe in midtown? The one with those strawberry cheesecake deals,” he asks even more questions and she hears a faint “Oh, Hona-kun said that he tried with Shinonome-kun, apparently it was to die for. I didn’t know Onee-chan frequented there”.

“You’re the girl” is the sudden response, only leaving Tsukasa more confused.

Saki is laughing at whatever Kanade’s face looks like “Oh my gosh, Mizuki mentioned her friend was looking at a girl who dressed in a hime style and is where you’re at when she passes to get to the station—”.

“Oh sorry, I gotta go” and the fliphone slips shut, charms rattling at the impact. She stands up out of politeness for her street crush (a girl she’s been eyeing that she always sees on the street, kind of the same premise as an airport crush) is hunched over and out of breath.

“Hello? Did you miss the train?” she questions, considering their earlier encounter. She hopes that she did so they could talk for a few minutes before Tsukasa’s train is supposed to come.

Her hair is fluffy-looking and the smoky dark look really suited her entire look. And she kept looking at her lips, those nude lips, so she wasn’t a rokku. She blushes when she realises how bad she had been staring, it was way different when they were in front of each other.

“I missed you!” her nameless crush blurts out.

Tsukasa’s heart does a leap at that, lace-gloved hand reaching to hide her mouth before the girl stumbles through her words “I uh, never mind that I didn’t mean to ask you about the train’s schedule”.

“Damnit, I was supposed to be cooler,” she hears her mumble before closing her eyes to calm herself. Honestly, Tsukasa thinks it’s more endearing to see someone get flustered because of her “My name is Rui”.

Tsukasa stares at the hand extended to her and then at those golden eyes seemingly enhanced by her dark makeup, she happily shakes her hand “Tsukasa! Shining Star in the making”.

She doesn’t say her full intro but Rui’s eyes soften a bit as if she has realized something “So that’s what you meant by being a star…”.

“Eh?” had they met without her remembering? She’s pretty sure she’d remember a fellow gyaru.

She fiddles with one of her chains “The recreation of Romeo and Juliet in a theatre not too far from the station, I happened to see it on the same night as you. You were eagerly talking to a few others about several Romeos fighting against one another and I couldn’t help but be intrigued”.

“You’re telling me I missed Rui in the audience that night?!”.

Tsukasa has decided that Rui was perfect “You’re into theatre as well?!”. She’s eagerly grabbing both of gyaru’s hands before she knows it, unbefitting of what a princess-type of girl would do, but she doesn’t care.

And from the way Rui’s eyes light up when she starts launching into an idea that was labelled as absurd just makes her never want to stop talking.

Cute and an aspiring director, as she finds out the more they talk, she wishes she had gone up to Rui sooner rather than wait for her! But at the same time there was something more exciting about being sought out by someone so beautiful.

And unfortunately, their time is cut short when Tsukasa’s eyes widen at the clock; she was going to miss her train!

“Oh dear, unlike you, I actually do have to catch my train” she teases, but is said when she notices the time, she really has enjoyed talking to her after being pleasantly surprised she was a director.

“Could we exchange numbers?” Rui asks, clearly nervous but trying to hide it under charm and Tsukasa feels an urge to kiss her. It’s strange, she’s never felt this pull to anyone before but perhaps the genuine interest and the link to shows is what is drawing her in. 

So she smiles “Maybe, can you give me your phone first?”. Rui nods, fishing her phone out of the black tote bag that hung off her shoulder. Tsukasa stares at it for a moment then has a brilliant idea and Rui should feel like about what the princess is about to do.

She’s dragging Rui closer to her and shaping a photo with the purple-haired girl’s phone before she fully registers it. She’s pressing a kiss on her cheek and angling it perfectly so she catches Rui’s wide eyes in the frame too, before pulling back to admire the picture.

Rui looks at her stunned as she smiles at the photo, her thumbs angled so she can type quickly, pink and white decor nails a stark contrast from the black charms. The ping from her own fliphone has her smiling giddily.

Tsukasa had just put her phone number in to text herself the photo, thus giving her number to Rui like she’s been wanting to do for long time. “I took a picture, that way it’ll last longer than you trying not to get caught staring~” she teases once more “I have to catch the train now, text me okay?”.

And with that, she’s off, parasol now resting on her shoulder as she turns away from the blushing gyaru with her jaw on the floor. Unbeknownst to her was that Tsukasa was blushing quite fiercely as well.

She just had time to hide it.

When she gets settled in her seat, she sees multiple missed messages from Saki, who probably tried to grab his phone back when Kanade seemingly recognized who Rui was.

Chapter Text

Tsukasa is a diligent worker and is good with lots of customization. She may not be the best with wiring and shaping the metal, but she was okay with that. The workshop was operating with a team of talented people who only wanted their ideas and products to make people smile.

So she holds her paint brush with its little star handle and focuses as best she can to keep colors within their designated areas.

She sighs, brushing her bangs, feeling her blonde hair beginning to slightly stick to the back of her neck. She should really think about tying that up, but that wasn’t the point right now. A sudden commission with a time crunch left her more motivated to finish the painstaking job of these cute little birds to perfection.

A star produces work with excellent quality each time, after all!

That being said, she works a lot better when she isn’t actively being distracted.

“Yo yo yo” a woman at a staggering height of 182cm compared to her 168cm, was standing there sulking. Even if one of her eyes was covered by peach-hued bands, she could see that expectant look coming from her girlfriend and colleague, Rui.

Her violet hair wasn’t long and was tied in a small ponytail in the back, mostly taken from one side of her hair. On her neck lay a black choker and a lightbulb necklace, one that matched the gold chain on her hip. Her collar pops out around her neck and the rest of her tracksuit is a darker purple than her hair. The little creature at her hip appears to be smiling at her; it reminds her of a kemo kemo monster from a cartoon she grew up watching.

She and Rui do not work in the same area due to their different skill sets, but it doesn’t stop Rui from dropping in to her area, leaning on her desk frequently for something as simple as a mere conversation.

“Tsukasa-chan~” Rui smiles once she notices Tsukasa is no longer looking at the robot “Please? Just a small kiss, then I’ll leave”.

Tsukasa remains adamant, “No! You’re making it so often that I might slip up and miss a deadline, which is unacceptable! Wait till we are not on the clock!”.

“Shiku shiku she won’t kiss me,” she feels Rui press on the back of her thanks to the chair having no back support, arms wrapping where they could without actually disrupting her work “I think I deserve it but Tsukasa-chan won't kiss me for all my hard word today”. Tsukasa had given up on painting for the time being when she felt her chair twirl around and took in the sight of her girlfriend, “Why are you so apprehensive? Tsukasa-chan likes kissing”.

“That’s not the point!”.

“Then what is the point? We’re alone right now”.

“I just don’t want to disappoint our customers or risk getting fired!” Tsukasa helplessly thinks as Rui’s face gets closer and she closes her eyes in anticipation, only to get a light kiss pressed on her chubby cheek.

“Eh?” her eyes snap open quickly, looking at a smirking Rui, paired with a knowing gleam in her eyes, “Was Tsukasa-chan expecting something?”.

Tsukasa knows she is blushing and it becomes ten times worse when Rui brushes a gloved hand to move her hair out of her face, leaving that expression visible to her very satisfied girlfriend.

“I wasn’t” she tries to sound confident, saying that, but it doesn’t come out like that, and Rui towering over her doesn’t help. So she pushes a bit back so she can get room to stand up and jab a finger in her direction, still having to look up, “There is a time and a place! Think about the other employees and basic respect!”.

“There aren’t any other people around so I guess we’re lucky” Rui flops down into the chair Tsukasa had previously sat on, before yanking Tsukasa down onto her lap, heads facing each other, which allows Tsukasa a close-up of a very cheeky smile “RUI! I STILL HAVE TO FINISH”.

“Tsukasa-chan~” is all that is said in response and when she tries to lean in two hands block her. Muffled noises persist until Tsukasa finally gives in to avoid the kicked puppy look, seriously how can someone who usually eludes such a cool aura with a tall height look like someone so small and plead with the likeness of a cute animal?

“One kiss” Tsukasa grumbles and Rui hums in agreement.

And then everything becomes so much simpler when their lips finally connect. She feels one of her hands trail to one of her shoulders, fingers drumming up and down to trace her choker plus her lightblub necklace.

She feels Rui’s hands trail up and down her back, only feeling mildly flustered at the tingle it sends down her spine. Nothing goes beyond pressing their lips and fleeting touches that make her feel giddy.

Eventually, she does make them disconnect because this is still their workplace. Rui pouts and Tsukasa tries to compensate, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

It wasn’t just one kiss either but Rui can’t find it in her to complain much. She likes kissing Rui just as much, she just has more control.

“You’re incorrigible, Rui” she mutters and Rui simply laughs.

“What’s this?” causes Tsukasa to push Rui away, horrified at the person who asked the question.

A man with light pink hair stands in the workshop, his octopus companion with her white and red polka dotted bow staring curiously at the duo who clearly just had been kissing. He stands with his arms crossed, green paint splattered over the legs of his tracksuit “Oya, care to explain~”.

“LUKI!” Tsukasa stammers out, finally successful at wiggling her way out of Rui’s grasp and is back on her feet bowing “I swear I am nearly done with this batch of the products—“.

“You’re fine, Tsukasa-chan. Rui-chan is the one that needs to get her act together” their boss, Luki, points at Rui who is now standing next to Tsukasa.

“No workplace affection that interferes with work” he says with a smile that held no smile “Or else that’s a pay dedication and no chance for additional bonuses”.

“Any pay deduction is worth it to kiss Tsukasa-chan” Rui confidently says before getting slapped over the head “I won’t actually reduce your pay, you’re just going to do all my paperwork while I take a nap”.

Rui’s face falls and Tsukasa nearly has the audacity to laugh, she knows her girlfriend would much rather be tinkering than filing paper work but she supposes a punishment is due when Rui keeps distracting her.

Honestly, she looks like a kicked puppy, so Tsukasa walks over before Luki can drag her out the room and kisses her on the cheek “Do your best, Rui”.

Tsukasa later finds out, while she had finished the last of the commissioned robots, that Rui had gotten through everything in record time.

“This woman…”.

She gives Rui I kiss when they both leave for the day, much to the happiness of her girlfriend.

Chapter Text

A movie double date wasn’t something Rui ever thought she’d even think about doing.

In fairness, she didn’t think she’d ever be able to be comfortable enough to do a lot of things, thinking she’d just become a shut-in after graduating. Life had other plans, which came in the form of a girl named Tenma Tsukasa, a person with ambitions to reach the stars and shine brightly for the world, so that everyone could smile.

Including Rui.

Being able to get ready for a date and go on a date with someone like her, someone she could call her girlfriend after confessing on their last day of school, surrounded by confetti, Rui couldn’t believe it.

The director had her hair up and combed through even more so than usual. She chose a slight blue knee-length skirt, a white top, and a button-up beige long-sleeved shirt for today. In comparison, Tsukasa wore a dark blue-grey shirt with a slightly oversized black sleeveless vest and a white pleated skirt. The shirt was actually Rui’s, hence why she needed to roll the sleeves up. Her blonde hair was shoulder-length in a slightly layered bob cut, a few loose peach strands framing her face alongside the half-up twintails. 

The problem they were facing wasn’t because of their appearances, no, but rather the problem was that it rained to the point that roads had to be closed, not that Tsukasa cared for much longer when Rui complimented her outfit. Furthermore, she had suggested they watch a movie at her place instead.

Rui got to choose the movie, so she chose a Sailor Moon movie she knows Tsukasa has the CD of. “This is perfect!” the blonde had exclaimed while getting the player set up, Touya standing next to her if she needed help.

A double date needs two couples, after all, and inviting the rest of the Fantasista Squad was only natural.

Touya wore a long black skirt with several layers of tops, including a black and white hoodie and a silver leather jacket. Her dual-blue hair let loose with a crown-dutch braid. Akito wore black and dark grey pants with converse boots that matched with the black and gray oversized hoodie and yellow shirt. Her ginger hair was still in a more mullet-like style, but her bangs were tossed over one side.

Rui also liked the detail of the matching necklace chain they matched with. Apparently, it had been noticed in the halls of Kamiyama and Rui wondered if Tsukasa would like to match with their own accessory in college when they started.

Akito was organising the snacks Tsukasa had dumped on the table while Rui tried to find the remote lounged in between the couch cushions. Rui rather triumphantly raises the found remote and earns a sarcastic clap from Akito, before all four hear the ding from the microwave.

“The popcorn is ready” Tsukasa announces, because what is a movie night without popcorn? “Rui, come with me! Touya, do you mind setting the HDMI cable?”. 

“Of course, Tsukasa-senpai” she says and Tsukasa takes Rui’s arm into the kitchen, pointing to the cabinet Tsukasa can’t reach.

“Fufu, shorty” she says, ignoring Tsukasa’s offended gasp as she grabs multiple shakers as instructed to: salt, salt and vinegar, caramel, and a few more.

“Are these all for the popcorn?” she questions, quite curious.

“Mhm! Saki got all these different flavours when he hosted a movie night with his group! Ichika and Momoi apparently had a field day and everyone was throwing popcorn” she laughs, grabbing the two bowls as Rui holds the powders, “And now we get that same experience! I can’t wait to try the caramel, it’s calling my name”.

Rui smiles, “That’s right”. She struts back into the living room and proudly places the big bowls down onto the free space of the table.

“That’s a lot of popcorn” Akito stares and then frantically reaches when Rui smiles devilishly while holding nearly all the power containers down, one shake to make an explosion of flavors. Tsukasa catches on immediately and stops her.

All the popcorn is distributed evenly and the movie starts to play as they all sit down. Tsukasa gets settled onto the couch next to Rui, taking the opportunity to lean on the taller girl’s shoulder, not that Rui minds in the slightest.

Not even a few minutes in, conversation already happens.

“Next time, I’ll bake cookies” Tsukasa murmurs and Rui teases her “Will they taste good and look bad like Chibiusa’s or look good and taste bad like Usagi’s?”. Tsukasa immediately claims that she’ll make them look good and taste spectacular, a bit too loudly, as there is a big shush as the screen shows the butterfly boy Perle, famous with his flute.

This type of behaviour would have happened if they had been in an actual theatre, Rui does not doubt it.

All four of them get invested rather quickly, and before Rui knows it they’ve passed the halfway mark; the dream coffins with the sleeping children, the reveal of the black hole forming from the magical innocent energy of the children, and how soon everyone on earth will be in an eternal slumber under Queen Badiane’s power.

Rui always thought that this would never be the ideal world. Badiane had promised the children a safe haven in her world of dreams, enticing them to stay forever, when this could never happen. The situation is hopeless if someone just sleeps their problems away forever.

She couldn’t stay powerless; she just sometimes needed help. Just like how the other Sailor Scouts, Uranus and Neptune plus Pluto, come to break the flutes so they all can storm the castle so they can reach the captured Sailor Scout.

The popcorn was mostly gone by now.

Touya’s expression is very animated for once, eyes widening as Chibiusa, along with the rest of the kidnapped children, has their energy stolen to create the black dream hole. Rui remembers also feeling a small amount of dread when all the Sailor Scouts except for Usagi are weakened by Badiane, and how the blonde chases after the Queen, taking Chibiusa into the hole.

The dreams that follow have always been the part that captivates Tsukasa, although Rui has never found out why.

“I am still surprised we are all together to watch a movie and not focus on a performance at this time of year” Akito remarks when the scene on screen is quiet for just a moment.

“This is a bonding hangout for our squad” Tsukasa adamantly says while Akito rolls her eyes “It is more like a double date that thankfully isn’t during our exam period”.

“There isn’t anything wrong with that!” Tsukasa fires back, being distracted enough to let Rui finally drag her onto her lap, properly situating her star to sit comfortably and allow Rui a hot water bottle.

Touya nods from her place against Akito, “This is fun”. Akito doesn’t voice any more complaints after she cuddles a little closer, but Rui also likes to think it’s because the queen was still demanding Chibiusa before launching into an attack, the other sailor guardians sending their power to Usagi to finally wake her up. 

It was exciting to watch it. She hopes that they enjoy watching this movie like she did for the first time, back when she experienced her first sleepover.

She has to hold back the urge to kiss Tsukasa senseless, as if they were in the back of a theatre and only came to find a place to make out. Yet Rui holds herself back, keeping her eyes on the screen as the Moon Gorgeous Meditation technique happens.

Her attention doesn’t stray from her girlfriend for long.

She feels a poke on her cheek and looks to the side, making eye contact with striking marigold eyes. Tsukasa shuffles a bit before she is satisfied. “Do you remember when we first watched this movie?” Tsukasa asks when she was snuggled up closer, likely not wanting to distract everyone, “Back when we were in middle school”.

A silly question.

“How could I not remember? You made me feel so comfortable in my own skin and you painted my nails” she murmurs, arms still snug around her, reminiscing that night.

She wonders if Tsukasa knew how much that sleepover meant to her when they had still just started out as the Pegasus Performers. Back when Rui was still unsure if she could grow up to be the girl she wanted to be.

Tsukasa finally gathering the courage to talk to her after that guerrilla gig may arguably be one of the best things that has ever happened to her.

“And I got to see Sailor Moon for the first time, if I ever forgot I’d let you make me sign a contract preventing any future rocket launchers I may or may not make” she adds on, ignoring how Tsukasa goes still at the mention of a rocket launcher.

Rui chuckles to herself before looking at the screen, almost instantly getting sucked back into the fantastical world the movie spins, even as the battle is ending and all the Sailor Scouts are returning all the children back to earth.

She wonders if afterward, all of them would be up to watching another Sailor Moon movie.

“Hey, Rui” Tsukasa brings her attention back to her as Chibiusa says goodbye to Perle, mimicking the kiss on the cheek. She feels Tsukasa’s soft hand on her cheek as she uses her seat on Rui’s lap to her advantage.

She giggles quietly enough to hopefully not drag the other two out of the movie’s atmosphere. Rui doesn’t even keep her eyes on the screen, despite the music signalling the end of the movie, a sunrise she knows is about to appear on the screen.

When the end credits start to roll, she hears “How long did you two make out during the movie?”.

“Akito” is said sharply by Touya but Rui doesn’t mind “Maybe if it was a boring movie, I could convince Tsukasa-chan to let me do that”.

She gets a slap on the shoulder “You’re shameless!”. Rui retaliates by pulling her closer. Tsukasa’s flailing legs kicked off the blanket that found its way to her “RUI! TOUYA AND AKITO ARE RIGHT THERE! OUR JUNIORS ARE WATCHING!”.

Rui just laughs and tightens her hold.

“Rui-senpai will always be Rui-senpai, we’re used to it” the ginger says, stretching her arms as she gets up “I am going to raid your kitchen now, I think Touya is hungry”.

“You heard my stomach growl…?” Touya looks a bit horrified as Tsukasa gets up to chase Akito, who was already in the kitchen “Ask normally– hey wait GET BACK HERE!”.

“Rui-senpai, did you hear my stomach growl? Was it really that loud?” she asks Rui this time, but Rui tells her the movie masked the sound and it must be because Akito was close to her or maybe she just guessed she was hungry.

“I see, as expected from my partner” she nods to herself.

“Fufu” even amidst this new chaos, Rui is happy to be here as herself with people who accept her as she is. 

(And she also knows that Tsukasa is happy her house is filled with voices and laughter, instead of a little girl waiting for the fun to ring).

“Touya-chan, should we go help Akito-chan raid the kitchen?” she proposes, standing up and extending a hand for Touya to take. The dual-blue-haired girl takes it “We should at least go see if she’s found the marshmallows”.

“Fufu, I wholeheartedly agree”.

Chapter Text

In a void is where a singular person resides, where someone is desperately clinging to hope.

No one could stop the flow of time, even someone like her. The sand in an hourglass never stays on one side, it may take longer, but no one could ever stop the sand. A certain purple-haired time keeper was more than aware of this.

Even if she wanted to, so she could get back what she lost.

That’s all there is to it; she’ll be able to fulfil those unspoken words to her beloved even if she breaks the universe to do so.

“Where are you? Where did you go? How do I come to your aid?” are only a few of the questions that run through her scattered mind “How can I keep our promise? I want to keep my promise”.

The exact words are never spoken out loud, but the promise is still everlasting, still ever-present. Perhaps this is why she was trapped in a purgatory she cannot escape from.

Red, red, red. That was the only color she sees for miles, the red sand mocking her every step she took, every time her determination didn’t shake. She is sick of hearing the sand crunching under her boots.

Rui has been stuck for as long as she can remember, anything in the past is now something that was so distant. This timeline she was trapped in, one she had no control over, despite all her powers.

Everything had a clock; everything was destined to erode.

There was only one way to escape a locked room, with a key, and Tsukasa was the key to everything. The very core of this story.

A story in which Rui doesn’t know the ending of, a story built on the memories of Tsukasa standing next to her. She wasn’t supposed to get attached; her mission for the universe and its timelines needed her not to place her priorities anywhere else–

Yet that obviously failed and she only realized it the first time she felt those soft, plush lips on hers.

Is that why everything has gone downhill so quickly? She really doesn’t know

When Rui walks, an unwanted thought sometimes appears: was this just an eternal punishment? Did she wrong Tsukasa so badly that she wants the timekeeper to be the one to end her suffering?

The uncertainty starts once again to no unambiguous ending with no identifiable pattern to break free.

She was definitely drawn to Tsukasa’s suffering, the poor girl who bent reality as a result, someone who wanted relief only Rui could provide.

She remembers the real Tsukasa, not the one she is certain she hallucinates who antagonizes her no matter what she tries. The loops make it worse for her, each time a new twisted version makes Rui think for a few heart-wrenching moments that this was a more plausible version of what happens when she dared to love another.

She likes to think that if there were an exact replica of her universe out there, despite the fact that she’s been managing all the other timelines for eons, that she would have always fallen in love with Tsukasa no matter what. Her feelings were genuine, that would always be the most important factor in her heart.

Love wasn’t just a word that implied the connection made shared between two people, saying that would neglect the trust built up between said individuals, neglect everything that allowed someone to fall in love in the first place.

Everything had been so lonely when she found out she reciprocated Rui’s selfish feelings.

She hoped Tsukasa still remembered her own feelings. When Rui finally reached her, she hoped Tsukasa would be merciful and grant her one more dazzling smile.

How long had it been since she saw it in real life and not from a glimpse in her memory? Experienced the warmth of it firsthand?

It wasn’t warm from where she lay on the ground, it wasn’t comforting like the hugs Tsukasa would pull her in as she got chastised to take a break. No clock hand stopped for anyone but the blonde made it seem like it was possible.

Tsukasa made a lot of things possible.

It had always been engraved in her that she was supposed to be closed off, avoiding making any connections that could lead her down the route of being affectionate, wanting to get closer to anyone.

But that was like asking a child not to dream big, even if Rui rarely ever slept before this mess occurred.

Soon, Tsukasa crept into her very soul; her habits, her mannerisms, her personality, and then her daydreaming. She yearned for the blonde whenever she went to do duties Rui did not have to uphold.

Their time together was never a waste, those moments were never a waste even if they had distracted her from my duties. She was born into those duties, but apparently wasn’t born to love.

Was she still loving someone who could be dead? Is that why she was experiencing this madness she could barely comprehend? Has time ever been linear? Just because it was perceived as such didn’t make it a simple progression from the past to the future. That’d be ignoring all the other potential factors.

Tsukasa cannot be dead, it was impossible, even if her mind was trying to split from the pain, she wouldn’t ever believe it. Tsukasa was waiting for her, she just hadn’t had much like getting to her yet.

Her legs give out as her mind drifts off to someone she refuses to lose.

She’s on the floor, the sand just strangely enveloping her, and her body just gives out against her will. Her mind screams at her to get up, that a lead-up to climax with nothing is worthless.

She can’t die; she can’t fail to keep her promise. What is the use of this infinitely vast well of knowledge, the very essence of time on her fingertips, if she has no chance to use it? She’ll outlive everyone, it’s her curse, but she adamantly doesn’t want to outlive her shining star.

Subsequent loops worsen, her state of mind threatening to give up and just fade into oblivion. Even as her body deteriorates, her mind keeps thinking about her. Flashes of Tsukasa from other lives, from the one she’s led with her.

Tsukasa, smiling at her. Her hair always looked like it was glowing, perhaps because she always looked like she was shining quite literally, reaching below her back. She wore the same black and white color scheme Rui did. The orange bow on her neck only had one side completed, the blue ribbon on Rui’s own neck matched hers. When they put them together, the two halves become a whole.

When Rui grasps Tsukasa’s hand, it's white and black, ying and yang, morning and evening.

The first time she had seen Tsukasa, she felt as if she couldn’t breathe.

Something more prominent comes to mind.

Tsukasa being twirled around by Rui was perhaps one of the most fond memories she has, the genuine and deep affection she had felt upon hearing Tsukasa’s light laughter made her feel so whole. Her black skirt had flowed like a princess’s. And when Tsukasa stared at her with that same affection, that same need to be closer and melt into one another, Rui couldn’t help but kiss her as if to say “I am never leaving your side, my star”.

Tsukasa kissed back as if responding to her declaration “My moon, I wish for that to be true as well”.

That wish just breaks her even more. Rui missed her so much. How long had she been walking to a place she hoped Tsukasa was? All she could do was hope and try to push herself up.

She can’t help Tsukasa, but she also cannot take her own life, doomed to be in a looping cycle without resolution. But she won’t give up because it is not in her nature to do so. Tsukasa taught her that, taught her what empathy could look like.

The fact that someone dared try to take her away from Rui had always been unfathomable to the girl.

She was going to keep that promise; she won’t die before that.

So Rui finally drifts off from the pain, after pushing herself up only to eat sand every time, and wakes up back where she started.

Until she figures out where it went wrong.

Chapter Text

In the big cities, one can never be too careful.

That’s why people lived faraway from the capital in order to avoid getting caught up in the royal’s nonsense.

Although most people lived in small towns and villages, not dark forests.

A woman with a reddish brown witch’s hat walks through the woods, a cloak of a similar color draped over her shoulders to protect her from the cold winter brought on. Her boots crunch in the snow, the pomegranate ornament on her cloak making clinking against the attachable collar as she goes deeper and deeper, the sun no longer shining as the path extends further.

Was this the witch of the woods? It sure was, Rui could attest to that considering she was the one donning on the witch hat.

But the rumors about the alleged dangers of the forest kept her place safe. As she walked a certain distance, the shadows disappeared as more gaps appeared in the branches again.

The sunlight reached its destination. Rui needed to live away from everyone and those who wanted help either reached out to her or did the trek to the nearer towns. She wasn’t ever going to give the actual place away.

That would put her safety in jeopardy “I wonder if she is back from town yet…”.

The stone cottage had a wooden fence surrounding it and a wooden roof over the fading red. It had a vintage charm to it and still could do everything a more modern cottage in the city could do.

There were some vines climbing up the sides of the stone and there was a neatly kept garden with an abundance of pomegranate shrubs and what looked like reluctantly placed vegetables ranging from carrots to eggplants. In a different area where rows of white lilies still stand tall despite the winds increasing, perhaps due to the powers of their planter.

It was a small, albeit cozy, cottage that Rui had called home only as of recent years. She had lived in this cottage for as long as she could remember, but it had only changed when a runaway white lily moved in.

2 years had passed since the night Rui helped her get out of an arranged marriage that would have trapped her, that would have ruined her life till she was a shell of who she was.

Rui believes the white lily should continue to shine.

That thought persists as she opens the door and calls out for anyone, only to get no response.

She takes her corset off and hangs her hat on the newly installed hat rack that someone had insisted she get. The next to go are her boots and she ruffles her hair while yawning. She was knackered due to having to stay up the nights before.

The notes on the table are proof enough of this, but because of this diligence, Rui could amp up the protection charm on her white lily.

The white lily was the person she lived, the person she swore to protect once she took the leap to break free of her confinements finally. Now she was doing things like gardening and going to town to do sewing jobs before doing errands for dinner.

Dinner that Rui can’t help but crave after a longer day than usual. So with her mind now in the comfort of her home, she falls onto the couch.

With nothing stopping her, she drifts to sleep.

Humming, she hears a melodic hum in the background that wasn’t there when she first closed her eyes.

She wakes up with her cloak removed and her head on something much more comfortable than the couch cushion. She groans, noticing a pleasurable sensation in her hair. When she blinks her eyes open and she is greeted by the white lily looking down at her, she shifts a bit to see her whole face without the blonde’s chest getting in the way.

“Am I lying on Tsukasa-chan’s lap?” she questions, but she certainly doesn’t mind. She’s dove onto her lap before when she was sleepy, and despite the minor complaints at the suddenness, Tsukasa always indulges her.

Just like how she was now.

Tsukasa’s long blonde hair cascaded over her shoulder, peach-hued tips just shy of touching her face and lacking her usual lily hair tie.

She flutters her long white eyelashes as if she were the one just waking up, and she offers her such a shy smile, “Good evening, Rui. Did you sleep alright?”. The fingers running through her hair were just enticing her to fall back asleep “The journey was longer than I expected. Sorry for passing out so suddenly”. She continues playing with her hair, making it harder for her not to fall back asleep.

Rui’s own hair wasn’t that long; she had short fringed hair that had a longer right side than the left. Sometimes, if her hat was pushed down too much, then her bangs would fall over her right eye.

“Tell me more?” Tsukasa prompts her once she notices Rui trying to fall back asleep. So the witch talks about merchants trying to scam her for useless materials, a family giving her a ton of bread when she checked the charms she laid down the previous months as a token of gratitude, and some poor soul that had turned into a frog because her witch girlfriend got mad at her then lost her.

"Her girlfriend came back and said she'd love her even as a frog" the last story gets Tsukasa to laugh, putting her hand in front of her mouth to hide it, a habit that slipped through sometimes despite Rui trying to get her to stop it.

“I love waking up to you” Rui murmurs as she turns to rest her face on Tsukasa’s tummy after recounting the day’s affairs. The witch was lucky, considering that she got to wake up to a literal princess, even in loungewear she looked ethereal.

“You sap” Tsukasa chides, now moving her hand out of her hair to instead trace her jaw.

Rui doesn’t mind being sappy, in a way, she wants to be as loving as possible to make up for any hardships Tsukasa has faced. Sure, her charms and place to stay could be considered more than enough – but it wasn’t.

Tsukasa was part of white lily royalty and enjoyed it, until her freedom had been taken away and she had been shackled to become a wife. Gone were her dreams of ruling the kingdom in hopes of making it a better place, gone were the chances to sneak out and go to theatres, gone was the chance to be herself.

She had confided in Rui when the witch snuck into the castle when it all became too much, someone who had been her friend for years at the time, and begged for any solution. Rui did not like the new marks Tsukasa hid so of course she had to do something.

“Let me help you run away, Tsukasa-chan”.

Despite what people had insisted she couldn’t overcome if she ran away, that she should stay and be obedient to some scoundrel who’d view her as nothing more than a maid and child bearer, Tsukasa had fought till she had her freedom. Those who came up with those ‘theoretical’, at least in their eyes, scenarios where Tsukasa ran away surely must have been stunned beyond belief.

Rui merely assisted in that journey, the full credit goes to this wonderful, kind-hearted, most deserving woman she has gotten lucky to meet and love.

Luck that continues to prevail with the love Tsukasa returns back to her.

“It’s not just about waking up to you, I really love you” Rui whispers after she has gotten lost in those striking amber eyes, causing a bashful blush to appear on the white lily’s cheeks and respond shyly “I really, truly, love you too”.

Tsukasa’s flustered face was one of her favourites sights, even if the white lily would always argue that there surely are better sights to look at. But she hopes that one day, when Tsukasa sees her golden and cyan reflection staring back at her, she’d believe Rui.

Tsukasa always said she adored Rui’s dual colored eyes, pressing kisses on her eyelids some mornings as encouragement for Rui to get up.

Rui won’t back down so easily “I really truly, madly, passionately, deeply–” until two fingers gently place themselves on her lips “I get your point”. The witch, in turn, kisses the fingers placed there, from hands not scared from magic and suffering. “But I love telling you how much I absolutely adore you ,Tsukasa-chan” she smiles somehow softer as she places her hands under Tsukasa’s arms, wrapping around her figure, and pulling her down onto their couch “Rui! That’s too sudden”.

Tsukasa’s giggles are more enchanting than any spell Rui could ever cast but she wishes she knew a spell to keep Tsukasa’s happiness eternal.

Rui’s eyes easily close as they naturally gravitate even closer to each other, the atmosphere is probably the most loving that Rui has ever experienced.

“Rui, don’t fall asleep, I have to make dinner!” Tsukasa pokes her cheek but Rui doesn’t say anything and pretends to be asleep still, eyes closed, even if she knows Tsukasa can tell she isn’t. She doesn’t get called out.

Tsukasa’s skin was warm and Rui was as addicted as a moth to a flaring flame.

“Five more minutes,” the witch murmurs, using no excuse to cuddle into the softness of her chest again, eyes drifting shut almost instantly. Tsukasa offers no qualms and just sighs, pressing a kiss on the crown of her forehead “Five more minutes”.

Twenty minutes passed by before Tsukasa finally forced her up, promising that if she could set the table while she finished the simple dinner, then they could go to sleep earlier tonight. Rui abided by the promise because she wanted to cuddle Tsukasa more in the comfort of their plush sheets.

Listening to the white lily’s snores was always the best lullaby.

Even if Tsukasa felt pain from having to leave everything behind, Rui would hold her hand and reassure her, because living with her was one of the best things that had ever happened.

Chapter Text

It wasn’t uncommon to see Ramune Direktorin and her trainer at the race courses on the umamusume’s day off: in fact, it would be considered strange if those two were not spotted. Ramune liked to collect data after all, even when she was not racing.

Thus, Ramune was in casual clothes: blank pants, a white jacket with green, red and orange, and an equally mismatched shirt. Her messily layered wolf cut was a nice purple, accompanied by two cyan streaks; her ears and tail were the same, yet her right ear, which faded into a cyan tuff, had a blue piercing. She originally wanted a yellow ribbon, but decided that the piercing looked cooler when she was a foal.

Her appearance wasn’t the point today since she wasn’t the one racing. No, today she had come to witness the Oka Sho, which also happened to be her best friend’s first G1 race.

A race that would start her achievement for a triple tiara.

When her trainer, Emu, lets out an excited gasp and points to the track, she sees her friend already in the starting gate. Pegasus was currently fixing her ear accessory, a smaller white ribbon adorned with small gold chains, similar to the white ribbon with golden accents she wears in her high ponytail.

The drills settle in place as the announcer begins to start call the favorites for the race, Pegasus’s name not being one of them.

“Did you bet on Pegasus, Ramune-chan?” Emu asks while fiddling with her bracelets as Ramune is admiring her in the starting gate, “Fufu, of course, but this isn’t about the money. It’s about my belief that Pegasus-chan will win. It's medium length as well”.

Her trainer laughs “The world would end if you didn’t think Pegasus-chan would win! She would get mad if you didn’t and go all guzu guzu…”.

“Or is it because you have a crush on her?” she teases and Ramune’s ears raise up in embarrassment “Trainer-chan…”.

And at that moment Pegasus’s trainer and Ramune’s childhood friend, Nene, comes up to where they will watch the race. She had her sage green hair tied in a ponytail and a stopwatch hanging around her neck.

She greets the both of them, accepting the fistbump from her trainer, before leaning on the railing.

“Pegasus was antsy before I had to leave,” Nene sighs “I just hope my training regimens were good enough for her”.

“Fufu, Nene is such a hard-working trainer, even after you guys changed her career goals” Ramune says, causing Nene to frown, “Don’t say it in that teasing tone”.

But she knows she isn’t teasing her, the fact that Pegasus was thriving even more now was an attestment to how much Nene cared for her.

“The race begins!”.

Then the starting signal goes off, effectively bringing everyone’s attention back to the race.

“Look Nene-chan!” Emu clutches Nene’s arms tightly “So close Emu…” but she doesn’t move as Pegasus takes an early lead, ensuring she doesn’t get rushed immediately. She got lucky to be closer to the outside, ensuring she wouldn’t suddenly get boxed in.

Her skirt was bigger than it looked, flowing in the wind with the white frills on its hem and large silver chains in the shape of diamonds falling securely on her waist as she moved. Thankfully, with one side being fabric that extends toward her knee, blue on the outside and yellow on the inside, it doesn’t interfere with the way she intends to keep a good pace.

She truly has remarkable endurance.

“Pegasus Sora refuses to give up her lead; she’s flying along with ease”.

She keeps up the lead and Ramune can’t help but stare as she runs the wings, small enough to not cause any problems running but big enough to make a show of them, she has made it appear as if she were flying through the race course.

The rankings are read again, with Pegasus still maintaining her lead and even extending it.

“1000 meters left!”.

Ramune wants to see those eyes, those striking amber eyes with the distinct star-like patterns in her irises that surely were determined. Filled with hope to win as she comes out first on the final turn “She’s doing it, Pegasus-chan is holding out”.

“Pegasus Sora pushes forward, what an unexpected turn of events! She’s leaving everyone in the dust!”.

“She’s doing it!” Nene’s voice is hard to hear against the roars, against all the anticipation building as the second place desperately tries to close the difference. She’s going onto the slop and she has only 200 meters left.

“Pegasus Sora with a final burst of speed! Pegasus Sora 3 lengths ahead of everyone else” the crowd begins to chant her name as she accelerates even more.

A front runner versus an end closer was always nerve racking, especially since Pegasus used to be a pace chaser.

But there she was, giving it her all as she crossed the finish line first.

She had won, she won the Oka Sho. Pegasus had done so despite not even being the favorite to win the race.

“Pegasus Sora crosses the line, what an excellent finish” the announcer is faint compared to Pegasus’s trainer “Against the odds of the favorites, she came out on top!”.

“EMU, RAMUNE, SHE DID IT!” Nene is almost uncharacteristically excited for a good reason, letting herself hug her trainer even tighter, leaving the pink-haired girl giggling, as the screen showed Pegasus in a slower jog waving her hands to the crowd cheering her name, the most dazzling smile gracing her lips.

Ramune is enchanted. Yes the purple-haired umamusume had won two G1 races before her, yet Pegasus looked so ethereal that she would disregard all her wins in a heartbeat to see that victory again. 

Disregarding them would make her trainer sad so she won’t actually do it, but she felt that even thinking that was enough to express her happiness for the girl.

Once the umamusumes have left the track, people start forming their own group, talking about the race as they begin to leave the benches.

The trio of pink, green, and purple are no exception. Her trainer is happily chatting away with Nene, who was more fired up than usual, while Ramune thinks about how she can improve her own performance to match Pegasus’s.

“Ah, I really want to know what she was feeling as she ran, as she won,” she thinks to herself, “She was really cute and she’ll probably be boasting about her start of success after the live performance”.

“She’s jumping over the railing!” is shouted out amongst the excited muttering and soon a path is being cleared quickly.

“Oh no,” she hears Nene say before Ramune gets the chance to turn around.

“RAMUNE! TRAINER! EMU!” a loud voice yells the trio’s names and out comes an evidently tired Pegasus, still a bit sweaty, yet uncaring as she launches herself straight into Ramune’s arms.

This sudden close proximity allows Ramune to catch a proper look at her face. Pegasus’s tail is swishing and her ears portray many emotions at once.

Ramune had seen a lot of faces and expressions on Pegasus, also her fair share of poses, but this ugly crying was something she hadn’t ever seen. Almost like Pegasus was crying like a child, her body shaking as Ramune tried to steady them.

She ultimately fails and then ends up on the ground, Pegasus sobbing into her shoulder as Ramune quickly brings her arms around her.

Amidst the excitement, the wondrous cheers, and promises to win that triple tiara, is just an umamusume who wanted to beat the odds. Her smile is so radiant, something so genuinely proud.

Ramune wanted to know more about her dreams, about her struggles before the academy, so she could know the story behind the umamusume known as Pegasus Sora.

“I did it!” she exclaims, elated at the fact.

Pegasus was not one to give up, even after not placing where she wanted to or when training seemed harder than the next. She would smile and say that a star could do anything, that she would show the audience she could be their shining beacon of hope.

Perhaps that’s why Ramune had initially been drawn to her and her smile. It was an attitude that was refreshing and made her feel like she had a chance here at Trancen Academy, a place where she could be accepted.

Thankfully, despite their rocky start, they had become attached to the hip faster than she thought. While part of her wondered what she was doing, the other followed her heart until she couldn’t imagine living without this wonderful feeling.

Ramune was hopelessly in love with this racer, filled with want at the sight of Pegasus expressing herself so freely and comfortably with her. She almost felt a tear of her own join the fray, but she stopped it because this was Pegasus’s moment.

Her moment when Ramune was completely captivated by “You did it”. Her own tail swishes as well.

For a moment, it is just them in the world — until a voice clears and Pegasus feels a hand begin to pat the top of her head.

“You did well,” Nene had crouched down, now giving her trainee a headpat “Don’t take it easy, you still have more races to win if you want that triple tiara. I’ll start a new regimen tomorrow if needed”.

The praise and acknowledgement from her trainer causes the blonde umamusume to detach herself from Ramune and instead fall on top of her trainer “TRAINER!!!”.

“Uwah, calm yourself P-Pegasus!” she says after having the air knocked out her lungs, but hugs her back once she has regained it, even if Pegasus is still sweaty after the race.

Ramune sits up and looks at the two, happy that Pegasus had begun to go down the path she wanted to — even if this was only the beginning.

(Even more so when she sees the paper the next day with Pegasus’s winning article having a photo of her on top of Ramune crying her eyes out in joy).

Chapter Text

Rui was sick with the flu but she felt like she was dying. At first, she hadn’t even realized she caught a cold because she felt like she usually did after pulling an all-nighter.

Only this time, she had a super sore throat and couldn’t stop coughing. So despite it being early morning and she was running on 2 hours of sleep, she got up to fill her water bottle and then promptly fell face-first onto the hard floor.

When Asahi woke up, she was only slightly amused before bundling her up on the floor. Now, Rui was medicated, hydrated, and lying on a makeshift bed with a cloth on her forehead to reduce her fever.

She didn’t have the power to carry herself back to her room and she supposes the rest of her new colleagues should be happy they went to an extra workshop today, so they didn’t witness her as a pathetic heap.

Asahi told her she had done the workshop a year before while in Japan still so she was staying by Rui’s side, allowing her to caress Rui’s cheek as she groaned, the sweat accumulating while she felt cold.

“You really are something Rui-chan, you’re now only accepting that you’re sick because you’re bedridden in the living room,” Asahi points out, “it’s just unexpected”. Asahi had predicted she was falling ill 2 days ago and Rui had dismissed it.

“Please don’t let this ruin your image of me, I am still a director that you can trust” she all but whines, glad that the paracetamol had finally kicked in to the point her headache was mild.

But she’s still upset that this is putting a wrench into her plans, and it’s more than evident on her face to the brunette, “Should I ask Asahi-chan to tell Tsukasa-chan I loved her before I pass away, to tell Emu-kun and Nene to keep smiling no matter what?”.

“Cheer up, she’s going to come soon” Asahi sighs, watching Rui’s brows furrow in confusion “Who is?”. She wasn't in any mood to entertain guests and she was surprised Asahi had invited anyone over.

“Your dazzling princess, Tsukasa-chan” Asahi replies as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.

This only adds to Rui’s peculiar desire to be taken care of by Tsukasa, as she was when they still performed at the Wonder Stage. She couldn’t help it! Tsukasa was always going to have those die-hard big sister instincts to take care of her troupe, like how she takes care of her brother.

That’s why she also liked to imagine herself as a sorcerer saving the star as a princess, and she wishes she could do a show like that. Will Tsukasa then know of her more than obvious feelings?

Not like that will happen anytime soon, she and Tsukasa weren’t even in the same country.

“You’re lying—“ she starts to say when the apartment’s front door slams open, Asahi must have left it unlocked, to reveal a star.

Rui’s mouth falls open, “TSUKASA-CHAN?”. The sudden loud volume makes her throat hurt even more

Tsukasa has a new haircut with blunt bangs and side bangs to frame her face. She wore a short side ponytail on her left side tied by a white hair tie and the rest of her hair fell below her shoulders. She was dressed in her usual dark blue sleeveless sweater and white shirt accompanied by her signature white hair bow and her beige skirt.

Her mind was playing a cruel trick on her.

“Hello!” Tsukasa happily exclaims in an accent that was nowhere near perfect before switching back to Japanese “Honestly, Rui, getting sick less than a month into your stay in America is quite the feat! Maybe if you ate more vegetables, this could have been avoided. I can’t even imagine the state your immune system is in”.

As Rui sits up, really too fast for anyone’s liking, she can’t take her eyes off the blonde closing the door, taking off her shoes, and then confusingly looking around for an indoor pair “Or maybe it’s because of the change in environment? See this is why I thought about my inhaler, because I tend to spike up environmental-related asthma, but I bet you’ve never checked or thought about that”.

Tsukasa is here as if Rui never left — but she’s not in America. Rui knows for a fact that she went to take an opportunity in Japan with a woman named Kijima.

“Do I need to sleep more because this hallucination is really realistic, unless I am dreaming” she still doesn’t believe it “Tsukasa-chan is in Japan, Tsukasa-chan is in Japan, Tsukasa-chan is in—“.

“Asahi-chan, pinch me,” Rui says completely serious as she turns to her colleague, “Or tell me straight up if I’ve died, I don’t know how you would, but tell me”.

Maybe, if this was a hallucination, then Asahi could help her stop seeing things. Unfortunately, it looks like she can see the not-real Tsukasa as well.

“Ah, so I must be having a dream where I can control everything, a lucid dream where I willed Tsukasa-chan to be here, fufu, Nene was right my crush is uncontrollable” she thinks.

“That would imply you’ve dragged me to the afterlife with you” the brunette replies, looking like she tries to stifle a laugh as Rui sniffs.

“Rui!” Tsukasa huffs, now much closer, as she gets on her knees next to Asahi “You are not dead! I am here!”.

She clears her throat “In New-York! A star has born!”.

“Tsukasa-chan, I think you mean arrived,” Asahi says “But you never told me why you were here, just that you were coming after I mentioned Rui-chan was sick”.

“I honestly thought you were joking till you asked me for our address” goes unspoken as Tsukasa begins to rifle though the tote bag she brought with her.

The two begin to talk about Tsukasa’s journey here, which admittedly Rui barely catches on to any details and figures she can ask her later, what mattered is what Tsukasa was here now.

Rui now decides to believe that Tsukasa really is here in the flesh and decides to not complain in the slightest about it.

Tsukasa is talking about her flight to Asahi, not even talking to both of them because she had momentarily closed her eyes and laid back down, when Rui feels a strange twang of selfishness.

“What’s in the bag? Is it medicine?” Rui asks, bringing Tsukasa's attention back to her.

“Ah right, I went to a pharmacy that Kijima-san helped me find on the map app! I then tried my hardest to tell the clerk I wanted medication for my very hot friend!” she says, taking out the pills she bought, “Asahi said you are running a very high fever, Rui! And a nasty cold to boot”. Her English catches Rui off guard at that literal translation.

“I guess Rui-chan is pretty attractive” Asahi mutters while Tsukasa keeps talking “She didn’t understand what I said so I had to use a translator, but I won’t fail again next time!”.

She then scratches her cheek “She even said I was cute and that she’d be happy to help me learn more English! Of course I had to get here as soon as possible but I’ll be back to visit the nice lady”.

“An older woman was trying to hit on Tsukasa-chan” comes the completely irrational thought from an out of it Rui.

If Rui had a pen in her hand it would have snapped in too, which surprises her. Maybe she just needs more sleep, she has been feeling more hazy and hot as the minutes pass by.

Which gives Tsukasa the time to go and change the cloth on her forehead, carefully placing it on Rui’s forehead after giving a loving swipe of her bangs.

Then a loud ping interrupts the quiet moment.

The blonde’s phone lights up and Asahi takes the liberty of reading the notification out loud.

⤷ Kijima: Don’t get into a lover’s quarrel in front of Genbu, okay?

“What could this mean?” Asahi wonders while Tsukasa stammers “Lovers? Me and Rui are not romantically involved??! Asahi, please give me my phone immediately!”.

Tsukasa, while blushing, snatches her phone quickly and begins to type back while Rui just lovingly stares at her for no apparent reason.

“Don’t you want to be my girlfriend, Tsukasa-chan~” is suddenly said by a more feverish Rui, much to Tsukasa’s shock and growing concern “ARE YOU SPIKING UP??? I learned that it doesn’t mean a girl that’s a friend, it means a romantic partner”.

Asahi sees this and feels like facepalming at whatever was going on between the weirdo wombo combo.

“RUI STAY WITH US!!!”.

Chapter Text

Walking home was always interesting to Rui because she had seen in the media that people walk with friends and have fun, they stop at arcades or supermarkets to grab cheap ice cream.

Real life wasn’t like anime or comics, but Rui used to dream when she was younger. All she was now amounts to nothing but someone who was letting herself go. She liked to think it was for a good reason and she wasn’t going to let anyone stop her new goals for the near future.

She didn't dream much anymore.

The new materials in her bag were more than enough proof she wasn’t put together. A good example would be to compare herself to the other school outcast that joined her on the rooftop.

Mizuki was always dressed nicer than she was, their uniform properly ironed and straightened out, their eyelashes brought out by the light makeup they typically do, their hair combed and cleaned. They were doing it for themself and she couldn’t help but admire Mizuki for it.

They had also been expressing concern because of how disheveled Rui had gotten, at least she was still bothering to wear a bra to school. The bare minimum is okay since she was the only one ever home.

And it’s not like the Kusanagis come over anymore, or anyone for that matter. Being neighbors didn’t mean anything, Nene was better off without her.

Her hair was in dire need of a haircut, growing much longer than she would prefer it to be, which meant her random side ponytail was longer than before.

Rui’s ribbon wasn’t even hanging loosely around her collar, she had lost it and hadn’t bothered to replace it for a few days. At the very least she still wore her tracksuit pants underneath her skirt to feel more comfortable.

And what little comfort she had left in the real world compared to the world Tsukasa offered her. So she was rushing home as others went to clubs, karaoke, or cram school; nothing she needed to concern herself with.

She knows she’s delusional and she loves falling into her daydreaming, imagining she’s performing guerrilla gigs with a real-life version of the shining sun, with a person who made her feel whole. Sure, she had her parents, Mizuki, Nene… but this was a side of herself that would only ever be accepted by her beloved Tsukasa-chan.

With Tsukasa, she felt like she had something to look forward to in the near future.

Those disgusting feelings will work themselves out; she just had to believe it would. Her hope these days was so fragile that she had to keep a tight hold on what little she had left. Which is why she had to join Tsukasa on the other side, where someone so warm and welcoming was waiting for her with open arms.

It would only be Tsukasa from here on out when she crossed over to the digital plane. It’s such a crazy condition to consider, but her dopamine deficiency leads her to latch onto the things that bring her glee, which just happens to be technology most of the time.

Robots to entertain audiences, screens to watch shows and musicals, an old laptop to play flash games developed by a great mind.

Her mom gave her a dead girl’s laptop and she ran with it, only that girl wasn’t dead. She was still a kid, so she could have fun, even if she wasn’t that childish in many people’s eyes. She’s just an embarrassment, a joke, to people she didn’t care about much.

She’s just an outcast and someone to be ridiculed. An outcast, now happily in her room with her bag thrown to a random corner of her messily kept garage. She hastily opens the laptop and clicks the application with fast precision, and before it even finishes loading in, Tsukasa appears with a happy exclamation of her name “RUI!”.

When Tsukasa calls her name so happily, she feels like choking. It’s not surprising at all and she roots for the feeling as it encases her.

She still feels in love even when the world’s unfair, Rui can’t read but she can read between the lines of code “Tsukasa-chan, I am home”.

It felt wrong that she couldn’t sit with her on the rooftop, not have her come over to her house, not be able to text her. Tsukasa had melted herself in the network and touched the clouds not found in reality, to escape her old world where Rui resides. The purple-haired girl doesn’t know the whole story and she doesn’t need to.

“It took you long enough,” she huffs and a frustration symbol briefly appears on the left side of her head before she smiles again “I have the perfect game for you to play today since all you’ve been doing is coding”. 

“I am doing the best for my final performance,” Rui replies, fetching the mouse underneath a pile of scrap metal for an abandoned project.

“Then you need a break, I’ll quickly get it loaded up” Tsukasa nods, happy with herself, before she disappears off the screen.

All Rui can do is lovingly stare at the screen.

She’s sick, radical, and pathologized. She’s happy when Tsukasa smiles at her; she’s just a fool of herself. When Tsukasa came into her life, it was almost unprecedented, and she still felt guilty for daring to assume she was dangerous, assume that Tsukasa wasn’t good for her. Yet she couldn’t ever deny the fun she had while playing the flash games – deny the fun she still has playing those games on ‘Tsukasa-chan’s sekai’.

Maybe it had started with her cracking a laptop open because of nostalgia for technology she had never been too familiar with, due to her growing age. Or perhaps she didn't apply to that. 

“Hey, focus on me!” Tsukasa's voice snaps her out of wherever her mind was drifting as the game had loaded. 

Now she was the embodiment of a white lily, full of elegance, to match the flash game linked to planting various flowers. Her blonde hair was tied into a side ponytail with a dark blue hair tie over her shoulder, the peach hue appearing in the middle before fading out into blonde again. Her clothing was fit for a princess with her long skirt and jacket that had ends like lily petals. The corset put emphasis on her waist, just like how the faint makeup helped bring out her brilliantly her marigold eyes shone.

The flash game is a simple point-and-click type of game, moving lilies to their assigned flower beds, watering them, taking them out at the right time to then be packaged in beautiful bouquets.

Rui always adored lilies, especially black ones. If she died, she wanted her parents to plant some on top of her grave. Perhaps as a last wish, although she wasn’t ever going to mention that in a last letter.

She needed to get to work on it, but right now she’s just planting flowers to a happy yet soft melody. The clicks almost lull her to sleep. Maybe school took more out of her today because she had to attend mandatory class talks.

And clearly her lack of speaking is bothering the game girl.

“No story? My director cannot be slacking off, the white lily may be patient and nurturing but she cannot do all the work on her own” is how Tsukasa breaks the silence, without a single speck of dirt on her pristine white clothing.

She looks expectant, but Rui feels strangely tired “I want you to tell me the story, surprise me

“Is that a challenge?” Tsukasa gets closer to the screen, staring at Rui with such an intensity that doesn’t fit her role.

“Fufu” she offers only a laugh as a response as she leans her head on her closed fist so Tsukasa takes this as a challenge but has to first point out how Rui should never doubt her abilities.

“I can make up any story, like when I was born the stars aligned and everyone gravitated toward me! I love the life I have now, not only from the lilies but from whatever universe I came up with in these games. My director can experience it all and it reassures me of my priceless worth!” she then goes a little quieter “and that I was born at the right time…”.

"I think Tsukasa-chan is the most loved person in my universe, isn’t that what matters the most?” Rui says after Tsukasa stares at her for a response “It’s okay if you never figure out the reason why, I just do”. Does a depressed middle schooler, in a clearly toxic environment she created herself, know about love in a way that could be meaningful?

Tsukasa lights up, white lily icons spinning around before fading as she gets closer to the screen. She’s so beautiful in Rui’s eyes, no matter her clothes, no matter her hairstyle, and no matter what role she was acting in.

Tsukasa is perfect and how could Rui not be drawn to perfection?

“When you’re with me, you’ll laugh so hard that you’ll have tears forming in your eyes from the joy! You’ll only think about me and not all those people who constantly forget about you!” Tsukasa is passionate and looks as if she wants to break through the screen “I’ll be the hero of your time! I’ll make sure those stars never take the stars out of your eyes!”.

“Fufu, Tsukasa-chan is always right” flows from her mouth easily, simply because Rui believes it wholeheartedly. Rui feels the most loved she has ever felt when she is with Tsukasa, she apologizes to her parents in her mind, and leans onto the screen, cherishing the heat and imagining it was Tsukasa.

The heat is comforting and Rui struggles to keep her eyes open, which she is upset about because it was only the early afternoon and she is talking to Tsukasa right now.

But her star is always observant.

“Rui, have a nap. I’ll be here when you wake up, then we can play this game together!” Tsukasa whispers as Rui feels herself nodding off, before a lullaby starts.

Tsukasa was singing and she sounded so scarily human, courtesy of Rui fixing her voice of course, but goodness it was comforting.

Rui falls asleep quite easily to the sound of Tsukasa’s singing and doesn’t wake up when the glitch sound effect sounds throughout the garage. 

The real Tsukasa is looking over her sleeping form with dull eyes and a delusion filled smile. Her. Her hair is a more muted blonde that still holds those peach hues, with clear black roots coming back. Her white bow is still there, the only bright color on her avatar. Her dark blue sailor uniform didn’t look too out of place, but the scars on her arms didn’t match her whole cute girl vibe.

“I can’t wait for you and for the world to see you when your disappearance appears on the news,” comes her deranged whisper as Rui begins to snore softly “I am glad I am not the only crazy one”.

“It’ll hurt but you love me” Tsukasa’s giggles are gleefully and manic at the same time “The world is mine, so come join me”.

Chapter Text

Watching the sunset is actually quite calming to Rui, the sky displaying the abundance of colors. A spectacle of reds, oranges, even with specks of pinks and purple, the explosion of color was addicting to look at.

The sunset was easily something to be in awe about; she won’t deny it. It had been a long day of performances, of making little kids smile with their fantasy-based storyline and grand effects, so perhaps it was more breathtaking because of the hard work she put into today

She also appreciated that she had a view of the sunset every day whenever she wanted, in her girlfriend’s eyes.

They were more amber in color but sometimes Rui could see the colors akin to a sunset, especially when she was shining so bright on stage.

That also took Rui’s breath away and she could find herself getting lost in her eyes forever, more so when she got the chance to be reflected in those brilliant hues.

She was so so lucky.

“Sunsets are really both endings and new beginnings, huh?” she mutters out which isn’t heard by anyone around her. 

If the sunset had been colorless, would she feel the same way? Maybe she was just being overly dramatic while waiting for her entire troupe to join her, for Tsukasa to come and say that the sunset was pretty.

She hopes they don’t miss the magnificent sight from the beach, the best view on their trip.

She doesn’t ponder on it for long though, as a camera shutter goes off once more and the wind dies down a bit.

Rui wore a long-sleeved white shirt with a chest pocket the same color, except with a dark blue top to it, matching her undershirt and knee-length skirt of the same color. She wore a necklace with a blue gem charm at the end of it. Her hair may be short, but it was still flowing in the wind, the salty air surrounding her as Emu hummed next to her. 

He wore denim shorts and a flowy white shirt with a piece of brown string wrapped around his waist, his hair messy from the earlier activities where he ran at full speed into the ocean. However, the most interesting thing was the polaroid camera in his hands, white and yellow and being happily used by the pink-haired boy throughout the trip. Just like right now

He takes them despite still firmly believing sunsets just signalled the unfortunate end to a fun day; he takes them because he believes Asahina will perhaps smile at them.

Rui knows that this could happen, considering she kept smiling at the photo he took on their first day here, of Rui lifting Tsukasa in a bridal-style cart over the ocean while in full costume. She had been squabbling about how Rui was going to drop her, unintentionally bringing herself flush to the other girl, while Rui could only laugh.

“What angle do you think Asahina-san would like best?” Emu asks Rui who doesn’t have an answer, briefly remembering the boy manning the nurse station but not having many other interactions with him, “I think since Emu-kun is doing this as a nice gesture, he should decide”.

Emu laughs, “You’re no fun, Rui-chan!”.

Another snap and another moment Emu takes to develop and store the photo. Rui doesn’t know the full extent of their relationship, but Emu is taking steps to truly help him, and Rui would always admire that.

He also knows for a fact if Rin and Len heard him mention Asahina, they’d tease him again for having a little crush on the purple-haired boy.

Furthermore, she hears Luki’s peaceful snoring and the comfortable silence Kaiko was indulging in as she held out her phone to face the ocean. They had wanted to see the view as well and Rui had no reason to decline.

Rui can really understand Emu here but chooses not to comment on it, instead taking another glance at the scenery and wondering how she could incorporate this into a show.

Tsukasa would play the sun, it was only the most natural choice. Maybe Rui could be selfish and play the moon, even if she wasn’t even as bright as the stars were.

“RUI! EMU! WE’VE ARRIVED” a loud voice carries over to where they are, causing Rui to turn around and Emu to stop crouching on the sand, “FORGIVE US FOR THE DELAYYYYY”.

It’s their missing troupe mates.

Tsukasa was shining alongside the sun in Rui’s eyes. She wore a light blue skirt that matched the top of her blouse and its collar; everything else was white which matched the white seashell hairclips in her braided hair. She had a bracelet that matched the one their entire troupe wore.

She’s ahead of Nene and waving excitedly as she runs onto the wet sand where Rui and Emu are. Finally, he catches up to the rest of them. Nene had a large sunhat in one hand and with his sage green hair tied up in a high ponytail with a dark blue hair tie to match the color of his pants. His white shirt had long flowy cuffs and on his waist was a dark blue string belt.

Tsukasa smirks, the fading sunlight catching her peach hues, “Ha ha! Despite our training, you still need to work on your stamina”.

Nene frowns, immediately picking up that Tsukasa was saying he was the reason they ran late “Tsukasa, you're wearing some type of heels to the beach; you’re the reason we were held up”.

“Nuh uh,” she sticks her tongue out and Nene remarks “I forget how childish our leader can be”. Before the blonde can try to defend herself, Emu can be seen agreeing with him, “Don’t back him up, Emu!”.

To make matters worse for her, Mikuo decides to pop out from her phone at that exact moment, waving his arms around erratically “Being childish is more than okay! The Wonder Sekai wouldn’t be the Wonder Sekai without it! Don’t forget, Tsukasa-chan!”.

Rui then takes this opportunity to kiss Tsukasa’s cheek “I like Tsukasa-chan just the way she is”. Mikuo lets out a squeal at the affectionate display as Nene fake gags, which makes Enu laugh while storing away his photos in the satchel lying on the dry sand.

Tsukasa returns the kiss with an even longer and harder on her cheek, effectively leaving a lipstick mark unbeknownst to the girl. 

She then turns to Nene after seemingly suddenly remembering something, “You say I am the one who made us late when I saw you eyeing plushies at those stall games! I bet you want to win one for Touya!”.

Nene blushes when Tsukasa hits the bullseye “S-so what? You were whining about not wanting to miss the sunset with Rui and Emu!”.

Tsukasa huffs as Rui replies “I can understand her sentiment, I wouldn’t want to miss Tsukasa-chan bathed in colors she was made for, but I also wouldn’t want to miss the chance for a memory with all of you”.

“Geez Rui, you’re so sappy” and “Rui-chan…” are the verbal responses, while Tsukasa just gives another kiss against the slowly reddening cheek.

“I hate to interrupt, but the sun is setting faster now” Kaiko focuses all their attention back on the bright lights encasing the sky "You guys don’t want to waste the last night here, do you?”.

So they all fall silent as they watch nature’s show.

The current colors are still vibrant and they really set the mood plus the tone of their scene, a view they had all seen outside their windows at home but never admired like they are doing now.

A camera shutter is heard alongside the crashing waves, and the moon slowly brings its presence to the world as the photo develops.

There is an indescribable faraway feeling no one has the name for. This naturally occurring phenomenon always disappears so fast.

“I wonder what the Sun would taste like” Luki mumbles in his sleep, which causes Mikuo to freak out about a giant pink goat swallowing the sun whole, but it doesn’t interrupt the atmosphere.

So Rui takes the opportunity to hold Tsukasa’s hand. She doesn’t look at her but she hears the gasp she lets out, before eagerly linking their fingers even tighter as the last rays disappear from the sky.

The sun looked as if it had melted into the sea.

They all seem disappointed that it was over, longing for more, and she can tell by the way Tsukasa squeezes their joined hands.

“The show has drawn the final curtain,” Rui remarks, also sad that it’s over now. Emu looks down a little sadly too “I’ll struggle to take more photos in this lighting, so maybe we should head back!”.

“Nhm, I’m also tired from today’s performances. I hope I don’t get back pain,” Nene says, pointedly ignoring the impact from that pain coming from his gaming posture.

Tsukasa’s still looking at the place the sun had set, still holding hands with Rui.

“Tonight doesn’t have to end,” Rui suggests, “We can go back to the fair, surely the lights will be even more enchanting at night, similar to Phoenix Wonderland, no?”. She then turns to Tsukasa, who raises an eyebrow at her. “I’ll win a plushie for you, you were eyeing the red dual-tailed cat earlier, right? That minigame will be a piece of cake for me fufu” she says as they step away from the wet sand.

“Rui-chan is confident!” Mikuo happily exclaims while Tsukasa blushes about Rui not needing to do that. She'll do it anyway, she wants to look cool in front of her girlfriend, after all.

“But I want to do that” is Rui’s response “And I’ll do so before our dear canary gets the chance to win one for Aoyagi-chan”.

Nene perks up at the challenge, “Oh, you’re on”.

The night comes back to them as they walk away from the deserted beach, the sun offering a final goodbye as Rui lets herself be guided back with Tsukasa’s firm hand holding. The vocaloids take their leave as well, mentioning a night show incorporating a phoenix and the sunset, even if Luki is still asleep.

Next time, she wants to experience the sunset with Tsukasa fully, from start to finish. She wants to hear what Tsukasa thinks as she stares into the blazing silent fire

But for now, she’ll focus on the smile Tsukasa graciously gives her as she wins her girlfriend a giant Jibanyan plushie at one of the stalls, hearing her wonder about how she was going to fit such a big plushie for the journey back, while Emu yells about if there’s a will, there’s a way.

Chapter Text

“I’m home, Rui!”. 

Tsukasa had gotten home to an empty apartment and had sighed as she turned on the hallway light. She really wanted to have been greeted by Rui or just arrived at the same time as her.

Rui had been reading on the couch when she announced she was going to her weekly training session with Akito and Haruka, something the trio had decided to get back into again, like when they had trained for that tournament, and Rui hadn’t said she was going to go out. “Haruka is still so hardcore, but that should be expected from a fully fledged idol. The fact I can keep up and teach her some new things from my stunt work is quite an amazing feat!”.

She really just wanted a hug and a head pat as a good job for training, just because she could ask for it and Rui would happily indulge her while saying her behavior was akin to that of a puppy.

She had just finished taking a shower, the towel still around her neck even after she dried her hair with a hairdryer, when she finally noticed a note in her dresser in that familiar handwriting.

Handwriting that had thankfully improved since high school.

She does briefly wonder why Rui didn’t text her and was instead trying to be cryptic while leaving a note in their bedroom, but dismisses it when she actually reads the note’s contents.

“Come to the place where it all began, where the alchemist was welcomed back by the greedy queen, where the lonely director fell in love with the star of the show,” she reads out loud and notices there was a time marked at the bottom alongside a request for her to wear white.

She could work with getting ready in 20 minutes! Especially if it’s for a surprise from her girlfriend!

Tsukasa has this white off-the-shoulder ruffled dress with a little cross tie detail on her midriff as well as a matching white cardigan to cover her shoulders when necessary. She hadn’t found an occasion to wear it recently and she had honestly forgotten how well it hugged her body.

Rui was in for a treat once she witnessed her thriving beauty again.

“I hope Rui isn’t planning on ruining the dress with paint guns or a confetti explosion” she thinks as she brushes out the ends of her hair, now tied in a simple low ponytail with her hair being used to hide the hair tie, and has threaded a white ribbon in a small braid above her forehead.

As she gets ready she can only think of the possibilities that could happen in the sekai. It has been a while since they’ve been on a date and she feels her heart start to speed up as she gets ready, she can wonder what Rui has in store.

They’ve been dating since they were 18 and still at 24 she feels like she did when they went on their first date, when they kissed for the first time under the stars.

It was natural, it felt right — it still feels right.

Rui had blushed so hard when they separated, a look she hadn’t seen on the usual calm and composed director, that Tsukasa had engraved the memory into her brain.

When she’s done, she smiles at herself brilliantly in the mirror and sees that the time for the date was nearly on the dot, so she eagerly reaches for his phone,

“I wonder what Rui could have planned,” she’s still smiling to herself even if she cannot see it in the mirror, and she knows if Rui were here she’d kiss it with her own smile.

So with that, she presses play on her song and is engulfed by the bright light.

-----------------------------------------

Rui had never felt this nervous in her life while onstage, waiting for the sole audience member to walk in. She knew Tsukasa was in the SEKAI because Meito had been kind enough to inform her, so she forced herself to take deep breaths and focus on her nerves on a single point.

She grips the edges of her cream colored dress, the one with the ruffled long-sleeved Tsukasa likes on her, the one that reached her knees. She wore it to match with the color her girlfriend will likely show up in as per the instructions she’s left in the note.

Well, hopefully after this it would be fiancée.

Emu had given her a black bow tie to wear, and she had done so before Nene sighed then changed it to weave through her long braid instead. He and Emu had helped her immensely, but now it was her time to shine.

The tent flaps fly open and she hears the faint voice of plushies responding to Tsukasa’s thank you before leaving. The star walks down the aisle before rushing to the front at the sight of her girlfriend, “Rui, there you are! I was looking for you when the cat and dog plushie led me on a wild goose chase. Honestly, it was fun because it reminded me of performances and moments we’ve had, like with Torpe the pianist, I wish I could have taken you with us!”.

Tsukasa is dressed in white and Rui’s heart threatens to beat out of her chest, but she must remain composed for now.

She had seen it beforehand of course but the fact that Tsukasa had noticed what she intended for her to, made her very determined to deliver her best performance.

“Who is Rui?” Rui questions “I am just the alchemist whose journey you’ve decided to watch tonight”.

Tsukasa gasps eagerly, likely driven by a sense of nostalgia, before taking the front seat with her hands folded into her lap. It seems she was willing to go along with Rui’s whims without fully knowing what was happening.

Rui’s performance isn’t extravagant and her outfit doesn’t really match the vibe but the lighting and background music are up to par. She weaves a story about the alchemist who wanted someone to love and hold close, searching the land and begging others to help through trials and challenges.

But this time, she struggles to find the person she was looking for: the queen who shone like a phoenix rising, only her flame wouldn’t die out.

There were no huge effects or explosions or intense music, but Rui performs it earnestly because this is how she wanted to propose.

At the end is a monologue she still performed solo, only this time without any music and one stage light on her, bringing an almost unsatisfying end to the one-woman performance — until she breaks character and asks Tsukasa what she thinks the ending should be, beckoning her to stand up.

Tsukasa doesn’t offer her an answer, but Rui launches into a prepared speech that ends up being about her and Tsukasa more than the show concept she just presented, something Tsukasa only catches on when she sees Rui reach her hand into her pocket.

It’s from her heart, that’s all that counts.

The lights go back to normal, allowing her to see Tsukasa in all her glory once again. It’s a sight she wants to keep waking up to for the rest of her life.

Rui is nervous as hell crouching on one knee, but she does so anyway, hearing the shocked gasp as she pops out a dark purple box from her dress’s pocket.

“I want you to join me for the longest show we could ever commit to as my lead actress and I’ll do everything in my power to be the best director by your side. It would be preposterous for me to imagine anyone other than you, my star,” the ring shines in the stage light but even more so in the reflection of amber eyes “Tenma Tsukasa, will you marry me?”.

There she said it, she said the nerve-racking question, in the same position Tsukasa had asked her to join her troupe again.

Tsukasa’s eyes go so wide they might pop off her head before she brings shaky hands closer to her mouth.

“Tsukasa-chan?” Rui is still not at eye level, so seeing Tsukasa put her face in her hands instead of answering is honestly worrying and making her question if this was the right time to get married. She’ll wait no matter how long it takes, but she hopes Tsukasa doesn’t feel pressured.

Rui thinks about calling her name again when she hears a shaky intake of air and finally sees Tsukasa’s watery eyes. Within seconds she starts bawling, rubbing her eyes and ruining her makeup.

“Of course the answer is yes!” she shouts, a dazzling smile gracing her lips as Rui rushes to get off the stage and wipe her tears for her. Tsukasa doesn’t allow this and chooses to wrap her arms snuggly around her girlfriend’s neck, sobbing into her shoulder.

She was going to get married to the crying woman in her arms, Tsukasa said yes! In the distance, she can faintly hear fireworks going off and a few party poppers. Tsukasa must be overjoyed if her SEKAI was reacting to her overflowing emotions.

Rui felt so happy, she could explode with these overflowing emotions. But she wills herself not to start crying alongside Tsukasa.

“Fufu, is Tsukasa-chan that happy at the prospect of marrying me?” she teases, which finally gets Tsukasa to lift her head back up.

She’s always so beautiful, even after ugly crying.

“You could have asked me to marry you in our bedroom after I had woken up and I would’ve said yes. The fact that you also told me to dress in white means you were more than confident enough,” is her answer “I love you, why wouldn’t I want the chance to officially call what’s yours, ours? It took you long enough”.

“I was trying to get finances in order and was getting your family’s blessing” is left unsaid as she moves her grip to the blonde’s waist and spins her around a few times, getting the privilege to hear these little giggles right in her ear.

“Alright alright, put me down!” Tsukasa softly demands after a fourth spin “I believe you have something to make my hand less naked”. An odd way to phrase it but she places her back on her feet, white flat shoes clicking as she is set back, and Rui pulls out the ring.

Sliding it onto her finger felt right, it felt natural, and Tsukasa beams at it with such a soft expression on her face.

“I am going to show this off to so many people,” she announces, admiring the silver ring on her finger as if it were always meant to be there.

“You could do that right now” Rui remarks, getting closer once again and changing their position, Tsukasa now nestled comfortably in her arms as if she was a bride.

She was going to be a bride, but right now she is just her amazing fiancée “What do you mean?!”.

“I couldn’t figure out of the logistics of this proposal myself, so let’s just say a few people knew about my plan beforehand” Rui chuckles but doesn’t elaborate on how the vocaloids helped her set up the stage and the lead up to her question nor mention how Emu and Nene helped her with her nerves plus the ring.

When the tent flaps part to let them out, a loud cheer erupts and the sky is an array of vibrant colors.

“Congratulations,” comes Kaiko’s voice when they step outside and is soon followed by an array of voices; the vocaloids and many plushies had gathered out of the tent.

She, however, notices Emu and Nene the most. Especially since Mikuo and Emu were hugging each other while sobbing, getting louder when Tsukasa put out her hand to show the ring.

Nene’s smile is soft and knowing; he looks truly happy for them.

Rui feels so loved, especially when Tsukasa kisses her on the cheek as everyone watches the happy couple.

So as Tsukasa expresses her joy by laughing, Rui secures her hold and spins her around, which makes her laugh even more. Emu starts cheering again, which causes even Luki to wake up and offer them congratulations.

It may take a while for the energy to die down, and even if her arms are starting to ache, she is going to hold her future wife up the entire time.

Her future wife.

After all, Tsukasa deserved only the best. Rui planned to give her only the best.

It's only after when they have returned to their apartment that Tsukasa laments on the fact she had to wash her dress now because her makeup was on it, fully expecting that Rui would've been the one to taint the white.

Chapter Text

Black water shrouded in fog haunts her mind to the point Rui wonders if she was a shrine maiden in her past life who died on that forsaken mountain.

The recent week has been absolutely horrible for one purple-haired girl who worked alongside a blonde girl near the mountains.

When she hears the water rushing, it brings in the all too familiar feeling of loneliness. Rui hates that fact to her very core and hates how the abyss is hidden in the depths of the rippling waves. The cries echoed in her ears, suffering that wasn’t hers but being forced to share it regardless of that fact.

Maybe this is why she has been on edge when she saw her reflection in the mirror; it reminded her of the clear waters.

Her hair was cut badly since she had done it herself during a fit of rage, just reaching under her chin, the violet contrasting with her more monotone clothing. Her black skirt reaches her knees, so the wind blowing isn't an issue and her legs aren’t cold because of the tights of the same color, although they have embroidered golden flowers on the left one. Her gray shirt was ruffled towards the edges with a bow on the neckline and a normal collar.

When Tsukasa looked in any mirrors, she posed with a peace sign on instinct.

Tsukasa was dressed in some cute black shorts and a lacey thigh band made of the same color. She wears a white top with sleeves that only reach her arms and leave her shoulders open with a black collar with a slightly loose V-neck. Additionally, there is an orange top wrapped around her waist with black frills at the end, the front having a split middle being linked with a black bow plus its red gemstone.

Her hair was messier than it was this morning, but that was to be expected after she challenged Rui to run all the way back; it reached the middle of her back and was usually tied up with a white claw clip.

Not that it matters, those were their day clothes. Right now, Rui was in her pyjamas and waiting for Tsukasa to finish in the bathroom. This was Tsukasa’s house, not Rui’s, but she had been encouraged to make it her own.

Rui wonders if that invitation would extend to the ghosts who had been getting bolder recently. She knows Tsukasa won’t, but the purple-haired girl has been too much on edge.

She had sensed ghosts near the mountain when they passed near it for errands earlier in the week; she swore she saw one in the crowd of people that had gathered around the street performer, the one glaring at her as Tsukasa spoke highly of the performance and how she wished to recreate it.

Rui wishes her mind would be silent for once, silent like in the box.

“No, I don’t want that!” she thinks she’s gripping the ends of her unruly hair but she has no clue.

She’s back by the shrine, but she also isn’t.

By bodies of water, her reflection is more prominent; she can picture the black box almost beckoning her forward with its malice, with its sheer power. It invites her, tells her that the shrine is where she was supposed to be, that she should return to the water.

Rui had never been in that water, so why was it so actively trying to drag her under in a ceremony she has no recollection of ever learning. She refuses to partake, she refuses to do something that would only bring her into dreaded isolation that she fears experiencing again.

The water would be cold, the box would be dark as well, but Tsukasa is warm. Even right now, as they get ready for bed, she knows Tsukasa will be warm after her bath and wants to hug her tightly in the bed they share. She focuses on recalling that feeling, all the way down to her very fingertips, in order to calm herself.

She takes a deep breath; she needs to focus on what was in the present. She’s sitting on the bed, she’s dressed for bed, she’s going to sleep cuddled up with her crush, her eyes are slipping closed faster than before –

And the water is rising quickly.

When she tries to move, her cramped limbs scrape on the side of the box. She figures it's a death sentence to not be at peace, but she doesn’t care, she suddenly feels so claustrophobic and the abrupt darkness is not helping her.

Singing, why was she hearing such a sorrow-filled voice in the midst of everything?

As the box fills up with water, going past her neck as she is helpless to stop it, she desperately takes a last gulp of air. She knows she can’t scream, she’d just gulp in so much of that disgusting water that she’ll die faster.

“I want to live, why is it so selfish of me to want to live?!”.

Rui would be dying with regrets, with shows she never got to perform out of fear.

Her vision becomes blurry and then everything fades.

Her eyes snapped open. When had she fallen asleep? She had gasped when she woke up, but hadn’t moved. Her body felt cold and sweaty, as if the pit of dread in her stomach had taken over her nervous system.

She wants to move, but the body around her right arm makes it hard for her to do so. Aside from her own harsh breathing, she hears snoring that some may deem too loud.

Tsukasa’s presence would usually be the ultimate comfort, but right now Rui can only focus on the fact that she might be dragging Tsukasa to drown the longer she stays with her.

She wants to go back to sleep, but she can’t. Her mind refuses to let her and seeing the blonde’s sleeping face combined with the images flashing through her mind is really making her feel guilty beyond belief.

Tsukasa unknowingly drives the fact that as long as she stays in her arms – no force in this world could take her from their comfort. Does the blonde know about how the mountain beckons her?

The fear will always consume Rui so she may as well get it over with. Ever since she’s been able to see the spirits of this world, experience the impure ugliness at its core, she’s learned she’ll always be scared.

But tonight is the night she gives up.

She changes back to the clothes she wore during the day, slipping on the tights and fixing the collar of her top, before only going with a flashlight to trek Mount Hikami until she finds that damn shrine.

This wasn’t like the last time where Tsukasa found her trying to wander to her death – now she was going to face her fate head-on. If not for herself, then for the girl she entrusted her dreams to.

She wonders if she’ll pass by the mangled corpses of those shrine maidens falling from the waterfall on her way up.

“Goodbye, Tsukasa-chan”.

As she goes uphill, her mind simultaneously screams at her to go back and go closer.

When Tsukasa wakes up from a parched throat, she notices a lack of presence next to her. She sleepily reaches all over the bed before sitting up and stretching, only to widen her eyes when she notices the bathroom light isn’t on.

She thought Rui had just gotten out of bed but when she called her name, she got no response. There wasn't any noise in the kitchen either.

Her heart usually beats faster when Rui smiles, but the way it was beating now wasn’t out of love – it was out of fear. Rui hadn’t been fully acting like herself and now she sees the missing flashlight with no note about where she could be.

Where could she have gone–

“The mountain!”. 

She hoped that wouldn’t be the case, it appears Rui may have been more afflicted than she thought, but whose hostile spirit was beckoning her closer and right under Tsukasa’s nose?

Had Rui really felt that unseen?

Her clothes are now on, the orange top, the white top, her black shorts, but she doesn’t arrange them till they are all perfect on her. What she does reach for is the Camera Obscura and the flashlight Rui hadn’t taken.

All she could do now was hope she got to her in time.

She barely takes the time to lock the shop before she is sprinting to the mountain.