The time to mission start was fast approaching and Ayase Eri was absolutely certain that she wasn't ready for this. She paced around her quarters, checking and double checking that she had everything that she needed packed into the carry cubes, re-reading the limited information that the command center had been able to provide, and essentially freaking out, because finally, for the first time ever, she was going to be meeting Toujou Nozomi. Not just meeting her, but living with her, smiling at her, eating with her, and just being with her.
For Eri, it wasn't just a dream come true, it was also a nightmare. What was she supposed to do if Nozomi wanted to do intimate things like kissing and hand-holding? Eri has never done any of those things with anyone in her whole life (she's dreamed of doing them with Nozomi her whole life), so she is certain that if Nozomi wanted to do them, she would definitely give herself away as an imposter.
There wasn't much hope that she would get away with not doing those sorts of things with Nozomi, however. According the information provided about the current situation on the crisis world, Nozomi and the other version of herself that she was replacing had a long history together, had mutual friends, lived together even though they were attending separate colleges, and even shared the same bed. All signs pointed to a long-term committed relationship. The command center was even certain that this relationship was the reason that the 'Ayase Eri' of that world had been abducted.
"I am so screwed." Eri checked over everything one last time to be certain that she had everything to set up properly. The plan was to have Honoka distract Nozomi while she and Tsubasa replaced all of the affected items in Nozomi's apartment with items that Eri had collected from other worlds. There were her clothes of course (she had no intention of wearing the ones that belonged to her other self), her favorite shampoo and conditioner, various books and supplies, and a collection of pictures that actually included her. It was assumed that all of the ones currently in Nozomi's apartment would have had the essence of 'Ayase Eri' removed when the organization behind the disappearances made her existence vanish.
Once everything had been replaced and the apartment made to look as if Eri had always been there, she would message Honoka that they were done and then Honoka would execute her part of the plan. Eri thought that injecting the poor girl with some sort of hallucinogenic drug would just make things worse, but she had been assured by the medical staff that there wouldn't be any harmful effects, and that it would help to convince Nozomi that the time that Eri had been gone was nothing more than a bad dream. She hoped that Honoka didn't screw up that part and cause Nozomi to be injured. She wasn't going to be able to rest easy for a long time at this rate; there were just way too many things that could go wrong with this plan.
"Hey, you ready? It's time to get this party started!" Tsubasa's referral to this whole thing as a party wasn't easing her nerves. Eri didn't feel ready at all.
The first thing that Nozomi became aware of was the fact that she was in bed. That wasn't weird in and of itself, but she could have sworn that she wasn't even at home before this. However, her awareness of her own reality hadn't been the best recently, and even consulting the cards, a practice that had once brought her clarity, had only left her more confused. As she thought this, a familiar depression hit her as once again she realized that her beloved Erichi is gone, and may even have never existed.
"Nozomi?" Nozomi could have sworn that her heart stopped beating for a moment when she heard that beautiful voice and looked up to see Eri leaning against the bedroom doorframe, a soft smile on her lips. "Good afternoon, sleepyhead. Would you like some hot chocolate? I just made some for me, but I can get another cup if you want this one." The hot chocolate was in one of her favorite cups, one of a set that she had bought together with Eri during a shopping trip last spring. She had been certain that particular cup was at Eri's parent's house, along with most of Eri's other things.
Tears started to fill her eyes as Nozomi's heart started to beat faster and faster. Was she hallucinating again? There was no way that her precious Erichi was right here before her eyes. She told herself that, but the Eri-hallucination didn't seem to agree with her. She watched through watery eyes as Eri, with a worried frown, placed the cup on the dresser near the door and uncertainly approached the bed, as if she was afraid that Nozomi was the one that will disappear at any moment.
"What's wrong Nozomi? You're crying…" And Eri reached up with one hand and gently wiped the tears away from Nozomi's eyes. Nozomi couldn't remember a more wonderful feeling than Eri's warm hand on her face and she threw her arms around Eri and held her close, afraid that Eri, so very real now, would vanish again if she were to loosen her hold for even a moment.
Nozomi rested her head on Eri's shoulder and closed her eyes. She could feel Eri's arms come up to hold her too, and even though she was completely confused about how any of this could be real, she prayed to everything she believed in that everything that had happened up to now was the dream, and not the other way around. "Can we stay like this for awhile? Just for a bit, okay?" She asked it nervously, but Eri's soft "Sure" and the following kiss on her forehead reassured her that she wasn't about to be harshly rejected by this apparition.
Now comfortably secure, and reasonably certain that her Erichi-hallucination wasn't going anywhere, Nozomi did her best to piece together what was going on in her own mind. What was she doing right before she woke up in bed? The answer was simple enough. She was at a café, talking with Honoka about something or other. What was Honoka talking to her about? A double date. That was it. Honoka was talking to her about the two of them going on a double date with Erichi and Tsubasa. But that meant that Honoka knew that Erichi existed, and that wasn't right. No one knew that Erichi existed except her. But if Honoka knows, then that means that Erichi exists.
Nozomi groaned softly as her head started to pound. The sudden pain eased a bit when she felt Eri gently run her fingers through her hair and whisper softly in her ear. "I'm okay Erichi. I just seem to have a bad migraine. That's all." She felt, rather than heard, Eri hum in acknowledgement, and then she was pulled down deeper into the bed as Eri shifted so that they were both lying down. "How about we take an afternoon nap then? Maybe your headache will be gone later if you get a bit more rest." Nozomi didn't have even the willingness to object to that idea. If she was allowed to stay like this for even a moment longer, she was going to take it. It was the very first time she could remember that she had been able to fall asleep in the arms of her beloved. She only hoped that Eri would still be there when she woke up, and if she was, she would consult her cards again, because she was certain that now that her Erichi was back, the spiritual power that had eluded her would work for her once again, and make everything clear.