📺Alice Moon in different Villainous AUs📺(OUTDATED)
I was reading some Baby Hats collection comics(ADORABLE, by the way, should check ‘em out), and thought, I wonder what Alice would be like in those AUs and some... and here we are. So, far I only got a few, so I’ll keep reblogging to add on if I find any cool ones. Also, if you guys have AUs you think I could possibly use, feel free to share them with me, I will credit you!
☀️🐺Heroic🐺☀️AU:
I’m not sure who initially created this AU, but I’ll use @qtarts designs because I love them to death!
Here, Alice Moon is instead Malice(Ma-less) Sun (put a lot of time in that name, not really).
Malice is a holy demon. She died under mysterious circumstances, and accidentally redeemed herself when she saved a life. To this day, she tries to earn her spot back as the strongest demon in Hell
She has a stubby grey tail and can make ears like a wolf’s pop on the top of her head
A notable power of hers are her poisonous tears and her incredible strength
She cannot fly, however, for her wings were ripped off long ago
She owns a small bakery called Bitters N’ Death. It was started to sell villains pastries filled and made with unpleasant ingredients to either give to their heroes or eat them themselves. Unknown to her, her pastries made for great heroic products. She sold it to White Hat, who offered a large sum of money for her small business and cooperation. She makes cakes that can heal, donuts that can increase strength, and some that can wash out evilness to an extent. She had no idea all those bootleg spices she bought off a market would make such good pastries, but continues doing it
Her colors are black, white, and some blue
Her frame is the same as Alice’s, and has light grey eyes with black scleras. Her pupils are inverted crosses. Her teeth blood-stained and sharp(claims it’s blood, but her cherry scented breath tells another story). Her long, grey-white hair is greasy and straightened. Her skin is white, but completely smooth.
Malice is a rude and arrogant woman, closeminded on all aspects and believes her opinion is the only one that counts. She’s got a silver tongue even villains get scared of, and simply put isn’t a nice person. Malice doesn’t follow anyone, she has no ruler or ‘god’ to look up to, except White Hat who she has to respect due to him being her boss
She's very nonchalant, and doesn't show emotion to pretty much anyone. Malice isn't one to react to even the smallest things
White Hat isn’t very giddy about her, but he can tolerate her enough to hire her for her bakery. Sometimes White tries to convince her she’s a really good person, but Malice always denies him that. He’ll ocasionally try to compliment her, only to have to dodge an incoming kick from her
Clemencia has a grudging respect for Malice, but doesn’t like her too much. It’s sort of like stepsisters forced to like each other, but far better than what Demencia and Alice have. For one, Clemencia has never tried to kill Malice. They have their occasional chats about stuff
Slug has respect for her abilities and snark, but he doesn’t enjoy her presence. Trying to get the two to get along is like trying to join two negative poles together, it just won’t work
6.6.6 doesn’t at all like Malice. But 6.6.6 doesn’t like anything
🌕🦉Apathetic🦉🌕 AU
Apathetic AU by @nivilliain and @themcnobody
Here, her name is Alibi(A-ley-bye) Satellite
Alibi is a seraph, but doesn’t take her ranking very seriously(claims she does, but doesn’t)
Her six wings are dark brown and her lips are naturally dark. Alibi’s hair is horned like an owl’s
Two notable powers of hers are invisibility and teleportation, therefore making her impossible to track down
She doesn’t own anything, not a bakery nor a medical degree
She’s very quiet and introverted. She’ll never initiate conversations first, and is cold to others. But Alibi has a very flexible moral code. She has no patience for idiocy and will not give her enemies a second chance
Her colors are yellow, brown, and grey
Her skin and body are the same as Alice’s, scars included. Her arms, however are entirely bionic. Her eyes are also robotic, with the cross- shaped pupils the cornea being a glowing yellow and the rest a metallic grey. Her brown hair is straightened and reaches her chin
Grey Hat was rather annoyed by her presence. She claimed to have gone down from heaven to guide them, but she does very little and none of them have been ‘enlightened’ as she claimed they would be. Full of promises, but no action. Though, she has proved to be a good hitwoman...
Yamencia isn’t at all fond of Alibi. Alibi is also attracted to Grey Hat, so she’s a rival. Only she deserves Grey Hat! Not that seraph scum!
Clug honestly doesn’t really notice her. She’s mostly quiet around him. Though, he’ll catch her do something awful. Clog enjoys this sadistic side of her
E.0.3 appreciates that she’s pretty much indestructible. Alibi is surprisingly patient with him, since he’s a sweet heart with incredible strength like her. They get along fine
⭐️🦊Cowardice🦊⭐️ AU
Cowardice AU by @skribblie
Alisabeth(A-lee-sah-beth) Star
Alisabeth is a cherub
She allows her fox ears peek out, and has a fluffy fox tail
Her colors are orange, grey, white, and green
Similar to the Heroic AU, she’s got a bakery that Fraid bought to sell her ‘heroic pastries’(Well, Glorf was the one who negotiated). She also has experience in the medical field, so no matter how atrocious she may be with the scalp, she manages to do something good out of it
She’s a lazy woman with very little kindness in her heart. What she does have of kindness, she uses it on the gang. She’ll ocasionally say something bordering on straight up cruel, but claims it to be her being honest. She is honest, and a little sadistic. But she tries to be nice for Fraid’s sake. She’s constantly tired, as well
Same physical build as all the other hers. She has her long, orange hair simply braided. She has bright green eyes, and claws. She’s paper white, and is covered from head to toe with scars of all sorts, so she bundles up in bandages
Fraid Hat is a bit frightened by her. She’s still new to the team, but she’s managed to do great with her bakery, no matter how terrifying her cooking process and ingredients can be. But he appreciates that she tries to be nicer around him
Sanity is okay with Alisabeth. She doesn’t really like how she always frightens Fraid Hat, but Alisabeth tries to fix it on her own, so there’s that. They’re iffy with each other
Dr. Glurf and her are on good terms. They both try to protect Fraid Hat while also playing a prank on him every now and then. I mean, one of the two doesn’t do it entirely on purpose
4.0.4? They don’t really talk to each other much, but sometimes the pink bear’ll eat the stuff that’s about to go bad in the bakery, so....?
🌎🐸Inked 🐸🌎AU
Inked AU by @the-mighty-sorceress
(Tell me if I need to change anything about the character)
Ally(Ah-lie, like the word)Earth
She doesn’t have any frog-like appendages, but always rocks a frog hood
Generally, a hippie nerd who loves to recycle. She’s really chill, and doesn’t care about you unless you bring her some Burger King or Carl’s Jr. She likes Java Juice smoothies, and small creatures. She’s asexual and the same romantic orientation as the other hers. She also has a ton of consipracy theories about everything(“I hear Java Juice is secretly governed by a grey alien”)
Her colors are green, blue, black, and yellow orange
Her specialty are some body modifications. Her main job is still making gourmet pastries and drawing, though. She also has a degree in surgery and nursing, so it’s useful in her modifications
Ally has the same frame as all the other variations of her. Her hair is long and dyed a light shade of blue. She wears darker blue cross earrings. Ally has a split tongue, and wears yellow-orange colored contacts. She also has only one tattoo, a small crescent moon on one of her shoulder blades. Ally often draws little crosses on the apples of her cheeks with a eyebrow pencil
Black Ink is chill with her. She can remove body parts and make humans look grotesque! I mean, it’s voluntary, but still! They’ve also been dating for a week, so there’s that too
Demencia adores what she can do. Body modifications?! Sign her up for teeth sharpening and tongue splitting!
Plug likes her. She was nice after he brought her a Java Juice cup, so yeah
8.9.8 doesn’t have an opinion on her. He’s just a dyed bear. But she likes him very much
I have been summoned by the mention of the inked au. Let's talk, you said Yukiho didn't get pregnant, but what about the others, pretty much everybody else has two kids, did they alternate?
What’s up anon? Thanks for asking!
Yeah Yukiho was like ‘Kids? Chill. Pregnancy? Akhsiznwnzk get that shit out of my face.’ (Which I have in single quote bc I’m paraphrasing but honestly? Could be a direct quote it’s Yukiho.) Alisa has all the kids there and was fine with that.
I’m thinking through the others and honestly? I think only Nozoeli alternate like that’s just how it works out.
Kotori, like Yukiho, wasn’t super psyched about pregnancy so Umi just took one I mean two for the team there.
Rinpana had twins and listen those kids? A Handful. Rin had the kids and then Rinpana made the executive decision that Well. Two Is Enough.
And then Nicomaki only has one kid who is a Nishikino-patented Only Child but also Mariko has like nine siblings in all the other kids in the group and is the baby and then later has cousins that I’m probs not going to detail bc that’s Way down the line and just essentially she has siblings.
Yo if you have any other questions about my Precious Children don’t hesitate to ask! I may not be able to answer right away due to my new job, but I’ll do my best!
…I created babies for all the endgame couples in Inked au (Unforgettable) today and I love each of my beautiful precious children idk if you guys would be interested in that but if you would, come to my askbox or get in touch with me by screaming into the night (I will hear you) and I’ll talk about my Precious Children
Pairing: Nozoeli
Words: 9546
Rating: T
Summary: Brought together by a bad situation, Nozomi and Eli find themselves fast friends, and time only serves to bring them closer. As feelings begin to blossom between them, it looks to Eli like nothing can stand in their way. The only trouble is: Nozomi’s a witch. Eli isn’t.
With secrecy laws and secret feelings to navigate, the two have their work cut out for them. These months may not be easy, but they certainly are unforgettable.
Author’s Note: Chapter 2 is up!! Also, I created the world this is set in with a friend for a comic that is still being written. I’m excited to share it with people! There is violence in this chapter, but there won’t be for the rest of the fic.
Beta’d by @banditchika :)
[AO3]
Eli wakes four hours later and sits bolt upright in bed.
Wait, she’s not in bed, this is her couch, and her arm is throbbing, and her shirt is sticking to her, and it’s dark. It’s so dark. The night comes back to her in a flash and she fumbles for her phone for a bit of light, hands shaking. Her breath starts to come in ragged gasps and she’s got to find her phone, got to hit that button, got to—
Her hands close around it and she smashes the home button. Her face is illuminated by the glow and she notes the time. 4:38. She’s got to go back to sleep, she has to get up in the morning, she has work— With a bark of laughter she remembers her arm. She can’t go back to work tomorrow, she wouldn’t be able to play anything substantial.
The phone’s light isn’t enough, isn’t nearly enough. It’s an oasis in a desert and the relief starts to fade as soon as it had come. Her breathing becomes irregular, the darkness presses in, closer, closer…
Eli jumps up and lunges for the lamp, almost knocking it over in the process. Once it’s on, she looks around wildly for some validation of her fears. Maybe this was instinctual, maybe she was actually in danger.
The room is empty, save her furniture, and honestly that reveals the worst of her fears. She leans back against the wall and squeezes her eyes shut, pressing the heels of her hands against her eyelids. God. She drags her hands down her face. Just. Wow. Eli laughs, snorts really. She kicked her fear of the dark back in high school, at least the worst of it, the kind that makes her…irrational.
She sighs. She should probably take stock of everything, figure out how bad this is, but, try as she might, she can’t get a grip on her feelings. It makes sense, she guesses, she’s not exactly at the top of her game right now. It’s 4:38—well, probably later at this point. She got in around 12:15 and fell right to sleep, so she’s only had about four and a half hours of rest. Is she tired? She tries to gauge her body. Yes, she is. Can she sleep? Again, she tries to gauge it, but that’s a harder question to answer. Maybe after a cup of tea. Taking a deep breath, Eli pushes off the wall. She glances down as she does so and sees the blood on her shirt. A shower and a change of clothes then too, she thinks, wrinkling her nose.
She trudges to her bathroom, flipping on lights on the way, and turns on the water to let it warm up. Eli shimmies out of her pants and gingerly takes off her shirt. Carefully, she unwraps the bandages on her arm and throws them in the trash. Once everything is off, she steps into the shower, wincing as the water hits her back.
It’s hotter than she usually likes it, but she doesn’t change the temperature. She lets the heat sink into her, enjoying the feeling, the pressure of the water hitting her head and shoulders. It does sting, though, as it hits her wound, so Eli holds her arm out awkwardly. She meant this to be a fast shower, get clean and get out, but she finds herself staring into space, holding her arm out as she thinks about what happened.
It’s almost too surreal to comprehend. She’d worried about something like that happening, of course, what woman hadn’t? But to have it happen to her, to have someone with a gun fucking mug her? Her?
And there was her little ‘red badge of courage’ to prove it. She’d read that book in high school, or was it middle school? On her own, in the library? It was short, she thinks, about the Civil War. The ‘Red Badge of Courage’ had turned out to be some euphemism for a bullet wound. She laughs, her face blank. The weirdest part of this whole thing is that it wasn’t a war. There was no reason for this. She wasn’t a soldier, she was just walking home, looking at the clouds, minding her own business, and a man jumped out at her. Eli couldn’t be more detached from this city if she tried. There was no reason for this.
She figures that she should be upset, but it’s just so…ludicrous to her that this could happen. So unreal. And then she hears the gun again, feels the pavement hit her skin, Nico’s weight pressing on top of her, purple light…
She frowns. Purple light? Where had that come from?
Her arm stings and she realizes that she let it drop into the water again. Hissing, she lifts it out of the stream and inspects it. It’s a deep, angry red that threatens to overcome her every time she sees it. Eli feels nausea and looks away, grabbing the shampoo for something to do. She squeezes it into her good hand and lathers it into her hair, determined to think of anything but the wound on her arm and the night’s events.
Shower over, she towels off and after a moment’s consideration, pulls a wad of toilet paper from the roll and dabs gingerly around the bullet wound. With her arm mostly dry, she begins to rebandage her arm in the way Dr. Nishikino showed her. It stings a bit, on top of the constant dull throb, but she gets it bandaged up more or less correctly.
Eli doesn’t find herself going back to sleep after showering and making herself tea. Instead, she turns on all the lights in the living room and watches the sun rise from her couch. At exactly 6:30, the earliest she’s allowed to call, she phones her conductor to tell him she can’t come in today. She doesn’t exactly tell him what happened, just that she was in an accident, no, not a car accident, and that her arm needs time to heal. Her conductor sighs, but says he understands and tells her to get some rest. She thanks him and hangs up, then watches the sun rise for another hour.
At 7:30, she calls Alisa. The phone almost rings out before it’s picked up with a, “What’s up, Eli?”
Eli frowns. That’s not her sister. “Yukiho?” she asks.
“Yep!” God, her sister’s roommate is way too chipper for 7:30 on a Thursday, which is weird, considering it’s Yukiho…
“Can I, um, speak to Alisa please?”
“Hmm,” Yukiho muses. “Well, you could, but your sister is being a lazybones right n—”
There’s a scuffle on her end of the phone and then Eli faintly hears her sister say, “Give me that.” Yukiho laughs in the background. “Sorry, Eli,” Alisa says, “Yukiho was just leaving.”
Eli can hear the rueful playfulness in her sister’s voice and her lips quirk up when she hears Yukiho scoff. “Rude.”
Alisa waits a moment before speaking again, probably waiting for Yukiho to leave the room. “She likes to come in here and annoy me awake when I have early classes.” She chuckles. “So what’s up, Eli? You called so early.” She punctuates the end of that statement with a long yawn.
Whatever happiness she had felt slides away and Eli is left feeling…empty. “Oh, well, I—” A thought strikes her. “Hey, you don’t have a test today, do you? Is your class an 8 A.M.?”
“My class is at nine, and I have a quiz later,” she says. “Eli, what’s wrong? You sound…” She struggles for the word. “…off.”
Eli exhales, then laughs nervously. She doesn’t really know how to say it. “I, um, well.” She takes a deep breath, for courage as much as for voice. “I got mugged last night,” she says.
It’s a moment before Alisa responds. “What?!” she finally says, and Eli flinches because god, the last thing she wants to do is worry her sister. But, she needs to, she barely knows anyone here, she needs her family right now. “Eli, are you ok?” Alisa asks.
“I, um, got shot actually,” she hears a sharp intake of breath from the other end. “But it’s ok!” she covers. “It was just a graze! Nothing serious, the detective took me to the hospital and I might have a scar on my arm but, well, right now it just bleeds a lot.”
“Eli,” Alisa says, and Eli can hear tears in her voice. No. No, if Alisa cries, she’s going to cry, and—dammit. Tears prick at her eyes and Eli tries to smile, to reassure Alisa, even though she can’t see her.
“It’s ok, it’ll heal, and, um, these two girls, or, well, women, they’re my age, saved me.” She takes a deep breath, and the tears subside for now. “One of them kicked him, even though he had a gun, Alisa! And all she had was—” Eli frowns, trying to remember. “…a knife, I think. Nico. And then the other one knocked him out…” Her frown deepens. That’s right, that’s what she remembers, but something…
“Eli? What’s wrong?” Alisa asks. “Well, aside from, you know.” She sighs. “Geez.”
Eli shakes her head. “I’m ok, I just… Never—” she pauses for a split second. Alisa will pry if she says ‘Never mind.’ “Um, anyway. Uh, the other girl—woman, had a taser gun, you know? And it knocked him out and then they called…911?” Something feels off about that too. Maybe they had had a discussion about why they called 911. Wow, had she been that out of it? “Um, and then a detective came and they actually knew each other, the women and the detective, I mean. Funny coincidence. And then they cleaned me up a little and took me to the hospital, and they actually knew the doctor too.” She laughs a little. “They must get around.” Eli blanches. “I-I don’t mean like that!”
“Well, the two women were gone when I got out, which I was a little sad about, because one of them, Nozomi? We were kind of getting to be friends. Also, I wanted to thank them.” She clears her throat. “But after that, I just went home.”
Alisa huffs. “I’m coming down there tomorrow afternoon.”
“Alisa,” Eli groans.
“No, you shouldn’t be alone right now!”
“Alisa, I’ll be fine, I just wanted to hear your voice, ok? You have schoolwork! It’s senior year!”
Alisa’s silent for a moment, and Eli cautiously hopes she’s won. “Fine,” Alisa concedes, “but the next time Yukiho goes back home, I’m coming with her.”
Eli nods. That’s fair, she guesses. “Alright, but please, don’t worry too much, I just wanted to talk to you, ok?”
“I gotcha,” Alisa says, sighing. They’re both quiet for a minute. “Hey Eli?”
“Yeah?”
“If you need, me, please don’t hesitate to call, ok? Or text. And really, I’m willing to come down whenever you want me to. Or you could come up here, ok? Whatever you need.”
Eli smiles. “Thanks, Alisa.”
“Don’t keep it from me,” Alisa warns. “I know how stubborn you can get.”
“I won’t.” Eli laughs. She needed that.
“Is there anything I can do now?”
Eli thinks for a moment. She shrugs. “I dunno, tell me about your week?” Maybe the chatter will help.
“I can do that.” Alisa sounds relieved that she can help. She starts talking about how her week has gone, how the professors have already amped up homework a week into the semester, how Yukiho has been, how the cute cashier at the grocery store must have graduated, and on and on for an hour as she gets ready for school. Eli feels herself relax. It’s soothing, At about 8:30, Alisa pauses. “Eli, I have to go to class now. Do you want me to call you tonight?”
Eli thinks. “I don’t know,” she says slowly. “Do you have a test tomorrow?”
Alisa sighs. “Eli, I can always make time to talk to you, ok? And no, I don’t have a test tomorrow.”
“Then, I’ll keep you posted?” she says. “I’m not sure yet, it might be nice to hear from you, but I might need some time to myself.”
“I get that,” says Alisa.
“There is one thing I kind of want you to do, though.”
“Sure, what is it?”
Eli hesitates. “Um, could you call mom and dad? And Babushka? I want them to know, but I don’t know if I can deal with talking about it to them.”
“I can do that,” Alisa says, “but you know they’re just going to call you right afterwards.”
“I know.” Eli nods. “I just… Letting them get out the worst of their shock would be nice. And I also don’t really want to say the words again yet.”
“That’s fine.” There’s a lull for a moment before Alisa starts speaking again. “I’ll text you this evening, ok? Just tell me if you want to talk, and if not, I’m out of your hair.”
“Ok,” Eli says. “Thanks, Alisa.”
“No problem,” Alisa says. “But I gotta go now. Bye! I love you!”
“Love you too,” Eli says. “Bye.” She hangs up the phone with a smile and just sits there for a moment. Thank the heavens for Alisa, really, she thinks. The room is still and content and she just lets herself be. She can actually start her day now, she feels.
With some effort, she gets to her feet. She’s sore, probably from being tackled by Nico right before she got sh—
No, nope. Eli pushes that vivid and awful memory away. She did get tackled, though, she can start with that. She remembers Nico’s arms seizing her and pulling her down and then it’s just the noise and the pain searing across her arm and something… Eli frowns. What had happened then? Nozomi… tazed the guy, right? Not that she had seen it all that well, seeing as she was still reeling from the, well, that thing that she won’t say—think?—but it’s just that she remembers thinking it was so much clearer… Heat of the moment, she guesses, when the adrenaline’s high and every second is sharp.
She shakes her head to clear the images and realizes that her hands are tense, as is the rest of her body. It actually scares her a little bit, and she works to relax, bit by bit. God, she wishes someone were there with her. She… Doesn’t want to go through this alone.
Eli feels tears start to burn and tries to swallow them down. Self pity will get her nowhere.
But she isn’t doing this alone! She stands up, wiping her eyes on her sleeve in one swift motion. She’s got Alisa and the rest of her family in her corner. Well. She will, once Alisa tells them. But she has a network! A support system!
And none of them are here. The thought springs up, unbidden, and the tears spring to her eyes. This time, she lets them flow for a moment, screws up her face and folds in on herself. She’s struck, as always, by how involuntary crying is, how you can convince yourself that you’re fine and at the same time feel your face contort with emotion. It’s frightening in some regards and in others it feels… False. But if it’s so involuntary, how could it be false?
She feels a wave of homesickness wash over her and puts the debate aside. It’s always good to talk to Alisa, but it’s even better to have her sister in the room with her, to be hugged by her. She misses her Babushka too. Eli thinks of her house filled with old furniture, the kitchen where she taught Eli to make bread, how proud her Babushka is of her, whatever she does, and she sits back on the couch and just lets herself sink into the sadness.
God she misses them. Maybe it was a mistake to come here all alone. Because who does she know in Queen City? Hanayo, she guesses, and she knows Yukiho’s from here too. Alisa gave her Yukiho’s sister’s number when she came here, but beyond a few texts they’ve never met. She considers texting her now, but decides against it. She’s not going to call a total stranger and unload, no matter how close their sisters are. God, Alisa knows more people in this city than she does. She guesses it makes sense. Eli’s retreated into work, practicing, and watching Netflix. Alisa’s bright and bubbly and even if she’s only visited the city a few time there’s no doubt that she’s won over Yukiho’s family and probably friends, too. Eli can barely make friends with her stand partner. Granted, he’s a middle aged man with three kids and Eli’s only a few years out of college, but still, she’s been sitting next to him for a month. Alisa would have made friends with him by now.
Nope, that’s not fair, she can’t compare herself to her sister. They’re both good at different things, and Eli’s sure there are things that Alisa wishes she did like her. She stands up again, forcefully, and wipes her eyes on her sleeve. She has to get out of this apartment if she wants this day to be any semblance of normal. Getting up, she splashes cold water on her face before getting dressed. She debates whether or not to cover her bandages. She doesn’t really want people staring at her, but at the same time, it’s August. In the end, she decides to pull on a windbreaker and heads out the door.
There’s this feeling of unease that hits her as soon as her door clicks shut. Her fingers fumble with her keys as she locks the door and there’s a chill that runs up her spine when she hears footsteps behind her. She turns the lock, pulls her keys out with a snik! and whips around to find the neighbor’s four year old staring at her. He looks startled, like maybe her turning around so fast freaked him out a bit. She smiles weakly at him, hoping he won’t cry. He just continues to look at her, unsure of what to do. His dad walks up behind him and puts a hand on his back. He looks confused and the last thing Eli needs is a parent yelling at her about scaring their kid, especially a male parent, so she just waves, says, “Hi,” and walks away as quickly as is polite.
“Daddy,” she hears the kid say, about to ask a question, and his father shushes him. Eli hunches her shoulders up and pushes the button for the elevator. She risks a glance down the hall and sees that the man and his son are headed her way. She makes eye contact with the man, and nods before all but bolting for the stairs.
She’s nine floors up, but it’s a small price to pay for avoiding contact, at least today. Considering circumstances, though Eli figures she can cut herself some slack.
By the time she gets downstairs, the man and his son are long gone and Eli thanks her lucky stars. She doesn’t know the man’s name, though she thinks his son is named Sam.
Eli leaves her building and starts heading for the subway station. Maybe she should get something to defend herself with too. Her parents gave her pepper spray in college, but she misplaced it and never bothered to get more. What are some other options? She’s seen women with these sharp charms on their key rings that look like cats, maybe she could try to find one of those. Nico had a knife on her, but…that seems a bit much. Besides, she’s not sure it’s even legal to have a knife that size just on you at all times, at least in the city. She’s not complaining about Nico, but she doesn’t really want one for herself. Nozomi had a taser though, and it worked well enough for her. Eli snorts a little. It certainly did work well enough for Nozomi, and Eli is grateful for it.
Nozomi. Eli feels that disappointment of not getting to say goodbye wash over her again. Finally, she makes a friend in the city and it’s a woman she’ll never see again. It had been really nice to talk to someone around her age again who really seemed to…get her? She guesses that’s not really fair to Hanayo. Hanayo’s nice enough and Eli likes talking to her, it’s just that after a certain point, they hit a wall. Polite silence fills the space between them and one or both of them finds an excuse to head out. Nozomi, though, she felt like she could talk to for hours.
Eli’s face grows red. That phrasing… well, she’s romanticizing it anyway. Just let it go, she tells herself. But should she try to downplay such a nice memory? It was good to finally talk to someone again.
Eli doesn’t realize where she is until she glances down the alley. As soon as she does, she freezes. She sees the bricks, wreathed in shadows even in the daytime, and her blood runs cold. Oh god. She’s going to be sick. She can see red and blue flash off the walls, the man lying on his back in the middle of it, feels a sharp pain in her arm even though it’s clear now, all daylight and dumpsters, nothing to be afraid of.
And yet.
Eli forces herself to look away and sprints down the block. People probably look at her, but she doesn’t care, she just needs to get away from there, and as fast as possible. She catches the last five seconds of the crossing light at the corner and sprints across with a second to spare. She starts to slow down only when she gets to the entrance to the subway station.
Breathing hard, her comes to a stop. There are lots of people around, and there are safety in numbers, she reasons. Her lungs are on fire, and she bends down, hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath.
Fuck, she’s got to find a different route.
After a long moment, she stands up again, taking a deep breath. She lets it out slow and wills herself to calm down before walking down the stairs. She swipes her metro pass in the terminal and pushes through towards the platform.
The rest of her tip is uneventful. She reaches her stop and makes her way up to the Target on the surface. She wanders around, picking up night lights and pepper spray as she finds them, and stays in Target for as long as someone can without losing their sense of reality. On a whim, she picks up a movie from the checkout line. She figures it will give her something to do later. Eli pays, leaves, and heads for the subway.
It’s just her luck that her mother calls her as she’s emerging from the platform.
“Eli?” she asks, frantic.
Eli winces. “Hey mom,” she says, steeling herself for this conversation.
“Are you ok? Alisa just called me.”
“I’m… I’m alright, mom.”
There’s a pause on the other end of the line. “Are you sure?” her mother asks. “You don’t sound too alright.” She’s gentle, and really Eli wants nothing more than for her mother to be here, with her, but she doesn’t think she can talk about this right now. Not twice in one day. That’s why she had Alisa call her parents and Babushka.
Eli feels her chest tighten up. She wants her mother. She wants to be comforted. She just doesn’t want to talk about what happened.
“Do you want to talk about it?” her mother asks over the phone. Eli snorts. It’s like her mom read her mind.
“No,” she says. “I really don’t, not right now.” She hesitates, and when she speaks, the words come out haltingly. “Could you just, I don’t know, talk about your week? How’s dad? How’s work?”
Her mother hums a little. “Of course,” she says.
She keeps Eli company on her walk home, which is longer than usual because she’s going out of her way to avoid that alley. When her mom finally does say goodbye, Eli’s been home for half an hour and is feeling much better.
“Thanks for calling, Mom.”
“Any time, baby. And feel free to call me whenever you need to, ok? Any time of day.”
“Ok, mom, I’ll remember that.”
“Don’t hesitate.”
Eli chuckles. “Ok mom.”
“I love you, baby.”
“Love you too mom.”
“Bye!”
“Bye.”
Eli sighs, content, as her mom hangs up. As apprehensive as she was when she got the call, it was good to talk to her mother.
She yawns and realizes how tired she is. It makes sense, she only got like four hours of restless sleep last night. She almost stretches out right there on the couch, but figures it might be nice to sleep in her actual bed after last night.
Getting up and trudging to her room, she checks off a mental list of things to make sure she’s done before going to sleep. She plugged in all the night lights while talking to her mom, so if it’s dark when she wakes up she’ll at least have that small amount of light. She’s also got to change out of her clothes. Beyond that, she can’t think of anything else, so after she changes into a pair of pajamas, she climbs into bed and is asleep in a matter of minutes.
The rest of the week passes in a similar fashion. Eli sleeps restlessly, waking up in a cold sweat more than once, and then falls into a longer, dreamless sleep when her body reaches a certain level of exhaustion. She stays inside for a few days, living off ramen and eggs and Netflix and when she feels cooped up, she goes out on the fire escape and noodles around on the violin. She can’t play anything too fast yet because it puts a strain on her arm, but she can play a little and it keeps her from going crazy.
A few days into her self-imposed solitude, however, she realizes she can’t take it anymore and leaves her apartment to go to the coffee shop down the road.
It’s a lonely affair. She sits by herself in this large room, surrounded by empty tables and chairs on a weekday. She nurses a coffee, which she bought more so she could sit in this shop than because she needed caffeine, and already the jitters are setting in.
She gets the text just as she thinks she’s been in here too long, that this is feeling too much like home in that she’s still sitting alone scrolling through Facebook with nothing to do.
(3:32) Honoka Kousaka: Hi Eli! This is Honoka, Yukiho’s sister!
Eli stares at her phone. Huh. She hasn’t talked to Honoka since she moved here. She recalls that they started to make plans but never followed through.
(3:33) Honoka Kousaka: Yuki reminded me you were in the city so I thought I’d say hi!
Eli feels a smile creep across her face. It’s a good feeling to be remembered by someone, especially when you don’t really know anyone. She taps on the message and types a response.
(3:33) Eli Ayase: Hey Honoka! How are you?
(3:33) Honoka Kousaka: I’m good! I just got off work :)
(3:34) Honoka Kousaka: How are you?
(3:34) Honoka Kousaka: Yukiho told me you were going through kind of a hard time. :(
(3:34) Honoka Kousaka: (don’t worry though, no details :) )
Eli bites her lip. It makes sense that Yukiho would know what happened, or at least that something had happened, what with how close she and Alisa are. She isn’t sure how she feels, though, about Honoka knowing as much. On the other hand, she guesses that Honoka doesn’t know as much, as evidenced by her last message. It is good to have someone checking in on her too… She takes a deep breath and texts back.
(3:35) Eli Ayase: Ahh, yeah, things have been kind of not great this past week…
(3:35) Eli Ayase: But things are getting better day by day
(3:35) Eli Ayase: I’ll be fine soon.
She’s actually not sure about that. She still isn’t sleeping well and she doesn’t even like to have her window open at night, not to mention her fear of the dark coming back. But, she isn’t going to unload on a total stranger, no matter how kind they are.
(3:35) Honoka Kousaka: That’s good to hear!
(3:36) Honoka Kousaka: Hey, I know we started to make plans when you first moved to town
(3:36) Honoka Kousaka: Do you want to get lunch next week? :)
(3:36) Honoka Kousaka: (I’d say this week but I’m really busy all this week >.<)
Eli grins. She doesn’t have plans very often, so she’s excited as she types out this message.
(3:36) Eli Ayase: Sure!
(3:37) Eli Ayase: Any day in particular work for you?
(3:37) Honoka Kousaka: Hmmm
(3:37) Honoka Kousaka: Does Wednesday sound good?
(3:37) Eli Ayase: I’m free all week! Wednesday sounds great!
(3:38) Honoka Kousaka: Awesome!!
(3:38) Honoka Kousaka: Where do you want to go?
Eli pauses. She still doesn’t really know restaurants around here.
(3:39) Eli Ayase: Well, I’m still kind of new to the area
(3:39) Eli Ayase: I wouldn’t really know where to go
She bites her lip again, somewhat apprehensive, like she’s disappointing this woman or something.
(3:40) Honoka Kousaka: That’s fine! :)
(3:40) Honoka Kousaka: What kind of food do you like?
They spend the next few minutes narrowing places down until they decide to meet at soup and sandwich place that Honoka assures her has great desserts.
(3:48) Honoka Kousaka: I should know
(3:48) Honoka Kousaka: I’m a baker :P
Eli laughs at that and realizes how much brighter everything feels now that she has something to look forward to. She smiles to herself. She has this really sappy happy feeling right now and she isn’t even embarrassed by it.
(3:49) Honoka Kousaka: So, see you then?
Eli starts, realizing she didn’t reply.
(3:49) Eli Ayase: See you then!
She wishes their conversation could have gone on a little longer, but she gathers that Honoka is a busy person.
With that, she decides she’s been in this coffee shop long enough and pushes back her chair. She stands up, puts her empty mug in the dish bin, and walks out.
It’s a few days later that Eli decides she’s well enough to go back to work. She calls the conductor in the morning to let him know she’ll be back, then spends the rest of the day in a nervous state. The rehearsal starts at five this evening and ends at nine because of an event being held in the music hall which means it’s going to be dark when she gets off the subway. It’s only been a week since the incident; Eli’s a little worried about how she’s going to handle walking home.
The late rehearsal time means the Eli also has a whole day to kill. She spends a few hours practicing, making sure she’ll be able to keep up in rehearsal, does laundry, dishes, cleans the bathroom, anything to keep herself busy. At four, she gathers up her purse, violin, and sheet music and heads out the door.
Eli gets there around 4:45 and quietly starts to set up. People are milling around, talking with friends, and generally ignoring her, which Eli is fine with because she really doesn’t want to answer a lot of questions right now. She’s just pulling out her sheet music when she catches a mop of curly blonde hair weaving its way through the stands. Her heart sinks and she chances a glance up over the stand to see the person’s trajectory. It’s a mistake, as it turns out, because she ends up looking directly into the eyes of the woman, Midori, who grins and waves. Eli ducks behind the stand, busying herself with something, anything.
Maybe Midori is just on her way to someone else. She doesn’t usually come over this way, if Eli remembers correctly she’s usually over in her own section or with the brass, but it’s always possible! Eli rifles through her sheet music for something to correct, but she can’t focus on anything as she waits for—
“Eli! Hey!”
She winces and looks up to see Midori a few stands away, smile on her face, and Eli puts up a weak replica in response. “Hey Midori,” she says. It really isn’t that she doesn’t like the girl, it’s just that she’s, well, a little nosy. She’ll definitely want to know why Eli wasn’t in rehearsal and Eli had mostly banked on the idea that no one would even notice she was gone but maybe her stand partner and Hanayo, so she doesn’t have a convenient lie.
“You haven’t been at practice for about a week,” Midori says, tilting her head. “Are you alright?” She’s parked herself almost toe to toe with Eli, who scoots back subtly in her chair, trying to create more distance between them.
“I, um, I was sick?” she offers. She doesn’t mean to make it a question, but it’s an on the spot lie and she’s almost comically bad at those.
Midori buys it, however, and sticks out her bottom lip in sympathy. “Oh, poor thing, being sick for so long!” Eli nods a little too fast. “Was it the flu?” Midori asks. “Is that why you’re wearing such a big sweater?”
Eli had put on the bulkiest sweater she owned that she wouldn’t die of heat exhaustion in to hide the bandages on her arm. Midori is wearing a sundress. Eli laughs nervously, her hands unconsciously coming up to grip her elbows. “Oh, um, no, I just get cold on stage sometimes.” Midori nods, satisfied.
“That makes sense,” she says. She looks down at the her bare arms and laughs. “I guess I don’t get cold as easily as you!”
“Haha, I guess not!” Eli says. Her inner self snorts unappreciatively. Her grandmother is from Russia, and Eli herself loves the snow. She reaches down for her case and pulls it onto her lap. “I’m sorry to cut this short, but I kind of need to tune my violin.” She smiles apologetically, her fingers ghosting the center clasp on her case.
Midori throws her hands up in surrender. “Of course! Of course! Don’t let me stop you!” Eli nods at her, making her eyes as earnest as she can. Midori rests a hand on Eli’s stand and smiles at her. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Eli.” With that, she turns on her heel and weaves her way back through the stands. Eli lets out a quiet sigh of relief. Midori really is the nicest person, it’s just that Eli’s still finding her footing here. She opens her case and pulls out her violin to tune it.
A few other people come up to her both before and after rehearsal to ask where she’d been and offer their congratulations on her safe return. Her stand partner drops into his seat beside her and grips her shoulder with a “Welcome back,” and a smile. Her conductor nods to her when he walks onto the stage. Hanayo catches her after rehearsal and talks with her for a bit while she packs up. Eli cuts that conversation short too because she wants to get home with as much daylight as possible, but it’s already dark when she leaves and she wishes she had just talked with Hanayo longer.
She’s not the only orchestra member who rides the subway, but she doesn’t really know any of the others who do. There’s the man who plays bassoon, an older woman who plays viola, a pair of wind players who Eli thinks may be married. She’s talked to them a few times out of an impulse to make a connection with other queer women, and they were nice, but they get off the train earlier than her and are usually kind of in their own little world. Not quite as smooth sailing as Eli might have liked.
Because of this, the ride home is uneventful, if tense for Eli. The last time she did this, rode the late train and walked home, a man pulled her into an alley. She tries to comfort herself by saying lightning doesn’t strike twice, but she holds her pepper spray close and wishes she had a hard case for her violin. Maybe having something she could swing like a club would deter an assailant. The backpack case is convenient though, and she doesn’t want to hurt her violin, so Eli cuts her losses. Her fingers grip the canister tighter.
Eli is slow, but steady as she leaves the train and makes her way up the platform. Her palms are sweaty, and she tries to blame it on the hot subway station but she knows better. Her eyes are alert, sharp, as she climbs the stairs and pushes through the exit terminal. She gains momentum as she walks towards the steps to the outside world, and she gets ready to take them at a run when she finds her way blocked by a family bustling off the platform. It forces her to stop and wait and she loses her momentum as she hovers nervously behind them.
They make their way slowly up the stairs and Eli waits a few seconds, not wanting to follow too closely behind. Once the appropriate amount of time has passed, Eli looks up at the night sky above, a rectangle twenty steps above her, and falters. She reaches out to take the stair rail, but can’t seem to bring her hand down around it. She lifts her foot and it ghosts the first step before coming back down at her side. It’s well lit down here and there are people around. Up there…who knows.
Taking a deep breath, Eli decides to go at it again. She grips the rail this time and pulls herself up to the first step, then another, and another, and another, all the way to the top. There, though, she falters. Beyond the steps is the dark pavement, the shadowy streets . Here she’s still safe.
Fuck.
She’s gripping the rail white knuckled now, with her legs frozen, her eyes glued to the sky. Her chest is tight and she wants nothing more than to be safe and home—
“Looks like we just missed the rain.” A soft hand is laid on her upper arm and Eli whips around to see Nozomi standing at her elbow. Her mouth falls open in shock and she lets out a huff in disbelief.
“Nozomi?” Eli’s stunned. She’d resigned herself to never seeing this woman again, thought it was a missed opportunity. Instead, here was Nozomi, only a week later, smiling up at her, almost shy. Eli does a slow blink, trying to process everything, and as her eyes open her mouth curls into a smile. She laughs.
She must look at her for a moment too long because a flash of something almost uneasy crosses Nozomi’s face for a split second before it’s schooled away behind her smile. Eli looks down and shakes her head quickly to clear it. “Um, hi,” she says, still not quite believing Nozomi’s here. “What are you doing here?” All the fear from before is forgotten and Eli feels a little like she’s floating from the shock. It’s the nicest thing she’s felt all week.
Nozomi shrugs. “This is my stop. I live five blocks away.” She grins as Eli’s face lights up.
“This is my stop too! What a coincidence!” Eli tilts her head a little, thinking it over. “Well, it makes sense now that I think about it. You and Nico were in the area when… That night.” Her face falls. She remembers the fear she felt and hugs her good arm to her side. Her teeth start to worry her lip and she looks over her shoulder at the dark street. She knows she’s probably being rude, looking behind her, but she can’t tear her eyes away from the shadows and that just adds to her anxiety.
“Would you want to walk together?” That breaks Eli from her thoughts. She turns back around to find Nozomi looking at her with sympathy. She hugs her arm closer to her side and feels the anxiety rise for a different reason.
“I wouldn’t want to pull you out of your way…”
Nozomi waves the comment off with an easiness that suggests that it really isn’t a problem. “Don’t worry about it. Where do you live?”
Eli glances behind her, still slightly nervous about the whole thing, and jerks her thumb over her shoulder. “About four blocks that way, on Nelson.” She clears her throat. “Um, where do you live?”
Nozomi points over Eli’s left shoulder. “About five blocks away, on Warren.” Oh. That wasn’t far away at all. Nozomi grins at her and Eli knows there’s no use in arguing this one. She smiles back and jerks her thumb over her shoulder.
“Then do you want to get going?”
Nozomi grips the handle of her purse. “Let’s go.”
Eli leads her towards the crosswalk next to the subway exit. It’s not the direction she pointed in, but she wants to avoid that…unfortunate section of alley, and if she has to go out of her way, so be it.
She’s a little giddy in the way the night has developed. What were the odds that she’d run into Nozomi again? She guesses they’d be a little higher now that she knows this is her stop too, but still.
She’s not complaining, though. They keep glancing at each other and laughing, like they can’t believe this crazy thing would happen, and it isn’t until they’re standing side by side, waiting for the light at the crosswalk, that Nozomi speaks.
“I guess you were telling the truth about being in the orchestra,” she says, patting Eli’s violin case goodnaturedly.
“Hmm? Oh, yeah,” Eli says. “We had a late practice today. Someone was using our space before us.” The light turns and they start walking.
Nozomi looks puzzled. “You don’t have a space that’s just for the orchestra?”
Eli shakes her head. “No, we rehearse in Fairview Hall downtown, and there was an early show today, so practice was pushed back.”
Nozomi nods. “That makes sense.” They reach the other side and step back up on the sidewalk, going straight. “What are you playing right now?” Nozomi asks. “Though I’ll warn you, I probably won’t know the pieces by name.”
Eli laughs. “It’s ok. Um, we’ve got a Bernstein piece, a Copland piece, a Gershwin piece, it’s a real modern concert we’re doing next. We also got the music for the next concert, which has more of a classical feel.”
Nozomi seems to think for a moment before nodding in understanding. “I took a music theory class in high school and this is the first time I’ve had to use it,” she says, grinning. They both laugh.
“I’m glad it’s finally paying off,” Eli says. “I guess you don’t listen to much classical music?”
Nozomi shakes her head. “No, I mostly listen to songs with words.”
“There are a lot of classical choral pieces,” Eli says, grinning, mostly to be a pain in the ass. They round the corner at the end of the block and keep walking.
Nozomi laughs. “You’re right, I should probably start adding Mozart to my playlists.”
Eli sees an opportunity and takes it. “You could add some Vivaldi too,” she says, barely able to contain her excitement, “but you know what they say.”
“What do they say?” Nozomi asks, amused.
“If it ain’t Baroque, don’t fix it.”
Nozomi bursts out laughing. “I don’t know what I expected,” she says, “but it wasn’t that. That was a good one.” Nozomi wipes at her eyes, sighing, and Eli feels a sense of pride well up.
The moment fades and Eli realizes she has nothing to follow that up with, so she hastily searches for a conversation thread. “So, what kind of music do you listen to?” she asks anxiously, trying to pace it by the speed of their conversation. She actually does want to know this, it’s not like she’s just keeping up a conversation for conversation’s sake, she just doesn’t want Nozomi to think she’s awkward.
“I like a lot of music,” Nozomi says. “The Killers, A-RISE, Hayley Kiyoko,” she gets a slight grin on her face, “that kind of thing.” She had looked up at the sky as she listed, but as she finishes she flashes that grin at Eli and Eli finds herself feeling…safe? Comfortable? She realizes how long she’s been without a friend and feels like if she’s not careful she’ll buckle into this feeling, just curl up in a ball and soak in the connection. Which would be unfortunate, because Nozomi will either think she’s weird or that she just needs saving all the time.
“How about you?” Nozomi asks her, and Eli breaks from her reverie. “What kind of music do you like?”
“Umm…” She thinks about it, looking off into the distance. “I actually really do like listening to classical music,” she says, “but I’m not picky when it comes to music. I like when there are good string parts, but I’ve also got some stuff like Florence and the Machine.” She turns to Nozomi. “My sister and I like Hayley Kiyoko,” she says with a grin. “She showed her to me and this summer, before I got this job, we would listen to her a lot while driving.”
“Sounds like you and your sister are close,” Nozomi says, turning forward. There’s something in her voice that Eli can’t place, and in the low lighting all she can see is that Nozomi has a half smile on her face. She almost sounds…sad. Or maybe wistful.
“We are,” Eli says, trying to figure out what caused this shift in Nozomi. “Do you have any siblings?”
Nozomi shakes her head. “No, I’m an only child. But I’m close with Nicocchi’s siblings.” She flashes that grin at Eli again and her demeanor shifts back to what it was before. “The youngest sibling is 12 and the oldest is 16.” She tilts her head. “Well, I guess the oldest sibling is 27,” she says, laughing a little. “But Cocoro’s 16.”
“Does she just have two siblings?” Eli asks. Nozomi seems eager to talk about Nico’s family and happier than she was when she was saying she was an only child.
“No, Cocoa’s in between Cocoro and Cotorou,” she says. “So three siblings.” She smiles and holds up three fingers.
“They’ve all got similar names,” Eli says, laughing.
Nozomi nods. “They do. Nicocchi’s kind of the odd man out here.”
“My sister’s name is Alisa,” Eli says, “so I guess our names are similar, but not to the degree of Nico and her siblings.”
At that moment, they step off the sidewalk and onto the bricks of an alley. Eli does some quick spacial analysis and realizes it’s the same alley she had been in a week ago when… She shakes her head. It’s a different block, the dumpsters and fire escapes aren’t the same. And yet…
Eli is acutely aware of the alley in her periphery. She sees something move in the corner of her eye and jumps to face it, one hand on her pepper spray. What meets her eyes is a plastic bag, drifting in the wind. Her heart, which had jumped to her throat, slows and Eli breathes out a sigh of relief.
“Eli?” Nozomi’s voice is uncertain and Eli feels her cheeks heat up.
“I-I’m sorry,” she says, embarrassed. “I thought I saw something. I-I didn’t mean to startle you.” She wants to move, wants to continue walking, but if she turns her back on this alley… She feels frozen, torn between her fear and her common sense, and she knows she’s embarrassing herself in front of Nozomi.
In a move that takes most of her willpower, she moves her left foot, turning her body so she’s facing the sidewalk again, and starts walking, stiffly, out of the alley.
Nozomi walks with her, and though Eli doesn’t look at her, she can feel concern radiating off of her. Eli chances a glance behind her at the alley and is relieved to see that no one is following them. She does this every few steps, checking quickly over her shoulder, then a glance at Nozomi, then looking straight ahead. A few steps later, quick check over her shoulder, a glance at Nozomi, rinse, repeat.
After about three cycles of this, Nozomi cautiously extends the crook of her arm. Eli sees it out of the corner of her eye, then looks at her quizzically.
“Strength in numbers?” Nozomi offers.
Eli considers this, then, hesitantly, loops her arm with Nozomi’s.
“Sorry for…all that,” she says. “Guess it’s still on my mind.” It’s nice, walking arm in arm with Nozomi. Having someone right there is comforting, especially this new friend. She feels safer. Part of her still wants to turn around, but it’s a much smaller part, and she fights it. There’s nothing there in that alley, nothing but plastic bags and other trash.
“Of course it’s still on your mind,” Nozomi says. “It wasn’t that long ago.” She squeezes Eli’s arm. “It’s ok.”
Eli squeezes back for a moment and allows herself to close her eyes and breathe deeply. She feels calmer when she opens them again, more tired too. “Thank you,” she says.
“Any time.”
They walk in silence until the end of the block, when Eli cautiously asks how work is going. They make small talk the whole next block and it does wonders to normalize the night. At the corner, though, Eli pauses. “I live that way,” she tells Nozomi apologetically, pointing to the left.
Nozomi nods. “Ok then,” she says, and starts towards the direction Eli pointed in.
Eli stays still. “Didn’t you say that you lived the other way?” she asks.
Nozomi pauses, looking around. “You’re right,” she says, nodding, “but I can still walk you to your building, it won’t be too far out of my way.” She grins at Eli. “Probably.”
Eli nods. “It’s just on the next block.”
Nozomi frowns. “Aren’t we doubling back a little? We already crossed that street a few blocks back.“
Eli looks away, blushing, and clears her throat. “I, um, wanted to avoid that spot where, um, the shit from last week happened.” She gives a wry laugh. “But I guess it turns out that any alley at night can set me off, so, sorry for taking you out of your way.”
“It’s ok, really.” Nozomi squeezes her arm again. “It’s not too far out of my way, and this has been a much more fun walk home than usual. Eli snorts in disbelief. “I mean it,” Nozomi says, and the sincerity in her voice makes Eli believe her.
“Alright,” she lets up. “Well, thank you then.” She starts to walk and notices a pleased look on Nozomi’s face as she follows. Most of the anxiety that she’s inconveniencing Nozomi fades away and Eli walks on in contentment.
They chat a little as they walk, but they’re mostly quiet as they approach Eli’s building. “This is where I live,” Eli says, pointing, and Nozomi nods. They extract their arms from one another and Eli blushes a little, thinking of how that must look. There’s nothing that says that two friends can’t walk home with linked arms, though, so she pushes that from her mind.
She stands there for a moment, unsure of how to end this. Abruptly, she sticks out her hand. “Thank you for walking me home,” she says. “It was really nice of you. I had a lot of fun.” The words feel stiff to her, and they must feel stiff to Nozomi too, because she holds back an amused smile, looking down at Eli’s hand.
She takes it in her own after a beat and gives it a firm shake. “Any time,” she says.
Eli hesitates. “Are you sure you’ll be ok walking back?” she asks.
Nozomi thinks for a minute, then carefully tugs her hand out of Eli’s. Eli pulls her hand back quickly, embarrassed to have forgotten she was holding it. “Let me give you my number,” she says, rifling through her purse for a moment before finding her phone. “I’ll text you when I get home.” She opens up her phone to the new contact page and holds it out to Eli, who puts her number in. “Besides, I can handle myself out there.” She grins and Eli nods, remembering.
“Yeah, your stun gun, I remember,” she says, smiling a little.
Nozomi frowns for a split second before remembering. “Yeah,” she says, “of course. Sorry, I’ve got pepper spray with me too.” She laughs a little as Eli hands her phone back to her. She fiddles around for a second before locking it. “Just texted you,” she says. A moment later, Eli’s phone buzzes.
“Awesome!” Eli says. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Nozomi says, smiling. She turns to leave. “I’m going to head off now,” she says, waving. “Bye, Eli, it was good to see you again.”
“Bye!” Eli waves, and though she’s anxious for her friend to get home safe, she does believe that she can handle herself. Mostly, she’s just elated to have a friend. She watches Nozomi get to the end of the block before turning and going inside.
She’s only inside for about fifteen minutes before Nozomi texts her.
(10:37) Nozomi Toujou: Home safe! :)
Eli breathes out a sigh of relief.
(10:37) Eli Ayase: Glad to hear it! :)
She debates for a moment before sending the next message, not wanting to seem clingy.
(10:38) Eli Ayase: Would you want to hang out sometime?
She’s a little surprised by how quick the answer is.
(10:38) Nozomi Toujou: Sure!
(10:38) Nozomi Toujou: Do you have a plan in mind?
Eli bites her lip
(10:38) Eli Ayase: No, I don’t.
(10:38) Eli Ayase: I don’t really know what’s fun to do in this town, sorry!
(10:39) Nozomi Toujou: Hmm…
(10:39) Nozomi Toujou: Have you been to Homura yet?
(10:39) Eli Ayase: I haven’t!
(10:39) Eli Ayase: That’s the place you said was a must-see, right?
(10:39) Nozomi Toujou: A Queen City staple, yes! :)
(10:40) Nozomi Toujou: Would you like to go?
(10:40) Eli Ayase: Sure! :)
They decide on going next Tuesday around noon, since they both have to work in the evening that day. Eli wants to talk more, she likes talking to Nozomi, but she’s so tired and as luck would have it, tomorrow’s rehearsal is in the morning. So, reluctantly, she says goodnight to Nozomi and gets up to get ready for bed.
Considering how anxious she’s been all day, she feels pretty calm right now. It feels good to have a friend, one she can really talk to. Eli thinks about that as she brushes her teeth. Part of her feels more alive than she has in a while, which she guesses makes sense. She snorts. Wow, she was really starved for friendship, wasn’t she. And now I don’t have to be.
Eli finishes brushing her teeth and finds she can’t wipe the grin off her face. She blushes. Well that’s a little embarrassing. Should she really place that much value on one night? That said, can she be bothered to care to care? She remembers Nozomi laughing at her dumb joke and feels that grin spread across her face again. God, she feels so dumb. She catches her eye in the mirror and feels her face heat up. “Shut up,” she tells herself, but hearing it just makes her giggle. She puts her toothbrush in the holder and heads out of the bathroom.
Eli figures she might as well let herself be happy as she changes into her pajamas. It’s been a while since she’s been this excited about anything, let alone anyone, and really, she’s needed something like this. She takes a deep breath and just lets herself be consumed by the feeling. She exhales. The sleepy feeling she felt before comes flooding back into her bones and she suddenly feels like she’s going to fall asleep on her feet. Tiredly, she crosses the room to turn off the main light, then crawls into bed, a smile on her face.
OK, inked au, Yukiho and Alisa being GAY NERDS, talk to your heart's content
HELLO FRIEND. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS PLATFORM I V MUCH APPRECIATE IT.
Alisa and Yukiho are best friends. They met in college, hit it off, stuck together.
As of Unforgettable, the fic this au is for, Alisa and Yukiho are seniors in college, but for this post we’ll backtrack a little
So sweet psychology major Alisa and glowering nerd Yukiho are good friends, best friends, when Yukiho starts getting a bit of a crush on Alisa and just goes ‘no no non onono non ono no FCUK!’
Honoka gets a lot of messages about this
honestly, she’s grateful for them bc otherwise Yukiho isn’t great about keeping in touch.
Anyway, the crush grows stronger and stronger until it’s literally all Yukiho can do to keep it hidden
This is complicated by the fact that they’re also roommates bc ‘hey are you living with someone next year? why not with me?’ and basically Yukiho is d y i n g 24/7 and Alisa’s like ‘your stress levels are up, you wanna talk about it?’ and Yukiho just nopes out of the room
Now, Inked AU is an au where like half the characters are witches. One of these witches is Yukiho (Alisa is not one).
Alisa pulls an all-nighter one night and like Yukiho gets up the next morning and Alisa’s like “Oh Yukiho you look cute.”
Yukiho is in her pjs and has a bad case of bed head and the combination of shock that Alisa’s still up, that Alisa thinks this is cute, and that Alisa called her cute, is too much for her gay little heart and she literally combusts.
Her socks, pant legs, and the rug all get scorched and Yukiho watches Alisa’s face grow horrified and she’s like ‘what?’ as Alisa runs out of the room and then looks down and is like ‘holy shit i’m on fire’ and Alisa runs back with the cold coffee left in the coffee pot and throws it on Yukiho.
They have a conversation fairly soon after that and honestly Yukiho’s more worried about Alisa finding out about her crush than finding out she’s a witch
It takes Alisa a Hot Second to understand and process it but afterwards she’s fine and gets that it has to be a secret and all that and there’s no need to get the Order of Secrecy involved.
Though everyone does assume that Alisa and Yukiho are dating now bc wow you told her man you guys must be going somewhere huh? and Yukiho dies every time.
Alisa also defo has a crush on Yukiho but the girl denies it at every turn bc she doesn’t want to make things Complicated and so she doesn’t want to make a move without definitive proof that Yukiho likes her back but Yukiho is a little tsundere nerd whose three favorite things to do are deny, deflect, and joke around until nothing she says is coherent and she can make her escape
You’ll see more about them in the fic
last note: Alisa gets business major Yukiho a fridge magnet that says ‘It’s 5 o’clock Somewhere’ as a gag gift but Yukiho unironically loves it.
