This Is Your Life
Shiki and Neku had been together for three years now… Three blissful years, even amidst all the heartache and pain of them having to live in the UG these days, but blissful they were.
Shiki could still remember well, the time that Neku had wanted to celebrate Christmas with her in the UG (their first Christmas together) and had wanted to buy a tree, of course. And he had… But he'd ended up buying a fake palm tree to decorate with instead of a pine tree, in fearing that if someone happened to see him in the UG… they might somehow link Christmas to the Christian God, and then that with the Composer, and then maybe jump to the right conclusion that Neku knew who the Composer was, and bring even more danger down on them all that way.
So, Neku had bought a fake palm tree. And, truly, it had been silly. Shiki had been sure to tease Neku for it, too. And later, even he'd realized he overreacted (even though they probably wouldn't take back the chance to try and protect Josh, even if they could… as he had been pretty good to them since enlisting them here)… but even with the silliness, it was probably Shiki's happiest memory. She'd put a Malibu Barbie on top as the "angel", and Neku had replied that that seemed fitting of a fashionista like her… and it had all been ridiculous, and so much fun.
And it was for that kind of happiness, that Shiki was mostly glad that she had ended up in the UG with Neku again. She hadn't killed herself after Coco had murdered him—even though a part of her had been tempted to, to Partner with him in the Game again if he had needed her—and hadn't gone back to the old Shiki, but rather had gone to work getting Gatto Nero up off the ground with Eri.
But then… Shiki had died in another accident. Not a car accident this time, but a piano falling on her head, of all things, while she was walking down the street. Thankfully, she hadn't felt that, and the next thing she'd known, she'd been in the UG with Neku and Joshua…
Shiki had then thrown her arms around Neku then and sobbed uncontrollably. And while Neku often tried to act calm, cool and collected, she thought that he had behaved as emotionally as she had when they'd been reunited.
Joshua had explained then, that he was just going to give her the penalty of not being able to play the Game again, since she and Neku were Partners (at the time, Shiki had wanted to slap Josh—thinking that he was trying to rip away her chance of trying to come back to life again—but now she understood he had just given her the solid of not having to play the Game again), and for that reason, they would be his unofficial Reapers working with him to figure out what had happened in Shinjuku.
Neku had apparently been working with Josh on that as soon as he'd died… though Shiki could tell he wanted to come back home, eventually, and so did she.
So, she told herself that when they stopped whatever was going to happen to Shibuya—Josh had to be mums the word about some things, it seemed—she would try and see if he would let them go back to the RG.
Shiki wanted to believe that Joshua would let them… seeing as how he hadn't forced them to become actual Reapers, or anything—which he more than had the power to do so—and instead pretty much let them be Players, but without a Game to play.
Shiki did still work on Gatto Nero with Eri. Very rarely, Joshua would tune her into the RG, so they could work on a few designs—she would go and see her bestie in the dead of night—and the next day, they would be back to having to e-mail it again… It was hard, but Shiki would take it.
So, this was the life that Shiki and Neku (and Josh, to an extent) had had for three years. A lot of the time, they would live with Joshua at the Shibuya River—because it was faster to be able to work with him on things that way—but other times, they needed their private time and stayed in an abandoned house together. Relators said that it was haunted, which was why people didn't go there, but Neku—who had learned how to scan Souls during some of their time in Shinjuku—told Shiki that that wasn't true in the slightest: to which she had had to giggle, that people could be so superstitious.
This was the life that Shiki and Neku had built for themselves… And maybe it was a little reckless to split up from Josh, when they had so many people gunning for them. But she and Neku deserved some happiness, right?
They both had seemed to think so… but now Shiki was very much wondering about that, when in this new Game… Neku had been caught—after he'd been unable to help himself from aiding Players in need—when he'd been going back from the Shibuya River to their home.
And Shiki hadn't heard from him since he had headed for the Room of Reckoning this morning.
It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened. And Shiki did find herself going outside, to hear players and Reapers alike talk about how they were going to catch Neku.
"Oh, Neku," Shiki thought, as a tear escaped from her eyes now, "I should have made more of the trips to Josh myself. I'm less recognizable than you are, since my Entry Fee was my appearance and most people don't know what I look like now. Nor am I a 'legendary player'. Your leaving now had foolish written all over it, and I should have seen it and gone in your stead!"
The fact that Neku hadn't even had time to text her since he'd become the UG's most wanted didn't bode well to Shiki, either.
And Shiki was freely crying now—and near a panic attack, as she clutched at her arms—but she told herself to hold it together. It wouldn't do to start fretting while standing over here at her and Neku's dining room table…
Their dining room table that Neku had once gotten so sick at, almost acting liking he had Malaria, as he how tripped down the stairs and into it, while Shiki had looked up from her knitting, horrified—even after being in the UG, he had gotten this sick, when she wouldn't have thought that that was possible—and she'd had to lay him down on the table to get him to drink medicine as fast as she could then, as his fever had been great… and he had finally grown to like the stuff, and the flavor of it that she liked, too… And then, thankfully, he'd been alright.
If Shiki started losing it so that she couldn't help now, she would never again get to heal Neku, or share more of her favorite flavors with him.
So, she had to do something!
Shiki no longer had Mr. Mew on her… she had given him to Tsugumi for her to use as a psych—as she'd had an even harder time finding a psych she could use than Shiki had—when it had seemed that she might be able to save Shinjuku in those early days… but she hadn't gotten him back since Tsugumi had been lost.
But still… Shiki thought she could probably use some other psychs now, like telekinesis, if she had to.
She thought about calling Joshua for aid here… but Shiki feared that his hands were tied with the Higher Plane on this one. And if he was going to help Neku, he was probably already doing it or would have done so by now.
So, Shiki couldn't waste time on that.
Instead… she prepared to run all over Shibuya to find Neku, if need be, but instead ended up going to the Scramble (so close to her and Neku's home), which was pretty much right where she and Neku had met: since Hachiko Statue was right there.
Somehow, Shiki had known Neku would be there… and her instincts had been absolutely right about that.
Neku looked exhausted, worn down, and beaten, as he knelt on one of the Scramble Crossing's many crosswalks now… All of the Players and Reapers fighting him must have really taken a toll on him, Shiki thought despairing and empathizing with Neku immediately.
And Tsugumi was about to erase Neku!
Shiki didn't even think about what to do then!
She thought she saw a blond boy worrying with a certain pin, but she couldn't process that now. Instead, she dove in the way of Neku and Tsugumi (holding him tightly as he shook, after she'd just saved him).
And after she got her bearings, Shiki very swiftly snatched her Mr. Mew from Tsugumi's grip, synced up with Neku—and how she adored, that even now… that he was able to do that with her; if that didn't show what they were to each other, she didn't know what would—and did a level three fusion with him once more.
And once everyone was distracted by the laser show Mr. Mew was putting on with his eyes, Shiki grabbed Neku's hand and ran.
Somehow, some way… she discovered she had a new psych like Neku did, as they sped away—that must have been activated the times Joshua tuned her back and forth—because Shiki could mess with their frequencies!
And for now, she got them both to the RG: Neku holding her and kissing her body all over in thanks and worship, as she did so.
She could breathe again.
And Shiki knew that their perfect life together would continue on… thank God or the Composer, she thought, grinning ear to ear and kissing him back.
Author's Note: So, this is based on how after Tsugumi erases Beat or whatever… if you look closely, there's a pair of white shoes that walk towards him afterwards.
And tbh… I was mostly certain that Hoodie was going to be Beat, and he was, but just for fun, I let myself imagine it was Neku or could have been him on this day. And I thought those shoes could have been Shiki coming to save him (because I thought they looked like the shoes she wore at the end of TWEWY, but now I think I'm just crazy). I also thought it might have been Rhyme coming to try and rescue Beat, but I doubt that, too. It was probably just Tsugumi walking or something.
But this whole story is based on that first fun AU idea. And that's also why it ends right when Shiki saves Neku/when we see those shoes walking towards him or whatever.
Hope you all enjoyed!
And the medicine thing, is based on how… I think Neku didn't like certain medicines in TWEWY? Or maybe none of them? Shiki liked one of them, though (I think). So, that's what that whole thing is based on. I wanted it to be food, but I couldn't find a canon food that Shiki liked that Neku disliked, that he could have changed his mind about for her, so this it was.
And it's NeShiki Day! I actually didn't think I would write this for NeShiki Day (I had something else done). And I just wanted to write tonight, and I didn't know where it would lead me. But, hey. It's NeShiki right on NeShiki Day. I think it's only right I share it for that day!:)