A/N: Hi! This is a new story from me, and the first I've written for TWEWY. I'm really excited for this one, as I feel Eri deserves a lot more love both officially and in the community, so this story will be all about her. The story takes place after the events of NEO, so be warned, there will be spoilers. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 1

"I'm telling you, people would love Mr. Mew leggings! With the right fabric we can make them super comfortable, and who wouldn't love to have Mr. Mew all over their legs?"

The redheaded girl insisted on this point as she walked alongside her companion. The idea had sprung into her mind that morning, and she knew her brain would never shut up about it until the product was brought to life. Her brown haired friend, however, seemed less certain.

"I don't know, Eri…" Shiki bit her lip as she thought. "We haven't made anything like this before. Maybe we could start with socks and see how they sell?"

"The fishnet socks sold well, didn't they?" The light was red, so as she and Shiki went through Scramble Crossing, Eri turned and walked backward. She could see Shiki directly, wearing her usual outfit of a white one-piece shirt, green cardigan, black leggings, thick glasses, and pale yellow sneakers.

Eri, on the other hand, had decided to mix up her outfit. She wore a red, sleeveless dress which reached her knees, a yellow jacket which she left unzipped, black tights, a tan scally cap, and sand colored ankle boots. Her red hair was in a low ponytail which reached her upper back.

Both Eri and Shiki had Mr. Mew bags with them. They had to rep their brand, after all.

"They did, but they were also a simple design, and cheap," Shiki said. "These would be different. I'll need a lot of material to make a decent stock, and they'll take way more time. We'll have to charge at least 12,000 yen."

"That's not so bad."

Shiki smiled. "Not everyone is willing to drop a fortune on clothes like you are, Eri."

"A fortune?" Eri made a face of mock shock before jumping forward and throwing her arms over Shiki's shoulders. "Why would I need that when I have the most awesome friend in the world making my clothes for me?"

A smirk of satisfaction rose unbidden to Eri's face when she saw Shiki's blush. "Like you don't buy out most stores anyway."

"Gotta keep an eye on the competition," Eri said. "And we can't do that unless we have the genuine articles right in front of us."

"Sure." Shiki sounded doubtful, which was just ridiculous. Eri really was analyzing the clothes she bought. It just so happened that the best way to analyze them was to try them on.

"Anyway, we're here," Shiki said.

'Here' was the 104 building. Every once in a while, the two of them liked to go inside and inspect Gatto Nero from a customer's perspective. There were some things that you just didn't notice in a store you owned.

God, Eri still couldn't believe it. She was the owner of a clothing store! Not just any clothing store either, but one of the most popular in Shibuya! They were taking the city by storm, and with a brand they had started in high school no less.

That was proven when they stepped inside the store and saw multiple customers looking around. There were so many articles of clothing on display, and most of them seemed to attract at least one person's attention. Gatto Nero was expanding every day. In fact, they were looking to set up a secondary location in Harajuku. Eri's dream was coming more to fruition every day.

No, not just my dream, Eri thought. Shiki's too. We'll shake up the entire world of fashion with Gatto Nero, and that's a promise.

Miki was busy talking to a customer, so she didn't see Eri and Shiki come in. Because of that, they were able to sneak to the back of the store and see the clothing on display.

"See, wouldn't Mr. Mew leggings go great with this?" Eri lifted the brown shirt jacket hanging up. "If we hang them up next to each other, they'll both sell out!"

"I think we can do better than that. Teenagers like our brand the most, so if we are going to make leggings, we should put them near the clothes that teens mostly buy."

"Which are?" Eri prompted, even though both she and Shiki kept a close eye on their sales. "Tell me, Miss 'Didn't Know What a Meme Was Until Three Years Ago.'"

Once again, she was rewarded with a blush from Shiki. "That's not—I had assumed—wait, you're the one who never told me!"

Eri giggled. "Who doesn't know what a meme is? I figured you knew!"

Shiki huffed. "Well, I didn't. I figured it out, though."

This verbal back and forth would probably have gone on longer if they hadn't been interrupted by a new appearance.

"Shiki?"

Turning around, Eri saw a familiar mop of orange hair. The boy their age was tall and thin, with a fashion sense that just screamed 'uncoordinated.'

Sorry, Neku, but why would you ever think our coats can be paired with jupiter nylons!? She really wished Shiki had succeeded in getting him to take them off. Still, despite his terrible taste, Neku was a nice boy. Eri had joined Shiki in her hangout sessions with the friends she made three years ago, and Neku had usually been there. In the times they spoke, he was always kind to her, though Shiki claimed he had been a brooding edgelord when they met.

"Neku!" Shiki's face lit up the moment she saw him, and Eri had to keep herself from making a face. No, she was not jealous of Neku. He and Shiki were adorable together, and she was completely supportive of them. Eri's long standing crush on her best friend was completely irrelevant to the situation.

Pushing that intense wave of emotions down, Eri smiled and walked up to Neku. "Hey, Neku. You here to finally fix that outfit of yours? Well, I say outfit. What I really mean is atrocity."

"Come on, Eri," Shiki said. "Just because it's true doesn't mean you should say it. Even if that outfit is horrendous. A crime of fashion, really. A—"

"I get it, you two," Neku said, though he couldn't hide his smile. "Jupes is still my second favorite brand, I don't want to stop wearing it entirely."

Second favorite, because all of them knew which was his number one. Hell, Eri remembered him being there on the day they first opened.

"Fine, we'll drop it," Shiki said, though she sent Eri a look that clearly meant 'for now.' "What are you doing here, there?"

"Shoka's birthday is coming up, so I was hoping to buy her a gift." Neku sighed. "Not sure what she doesn't own from this place, though."

That figured. Ever since the "Twisters" (they still wouldn't explain why they called themselves that) had begun hanging out with them, Neku had become a certified mom friend. He wouldn't miss any of their birthdays no matter how hard someone tried to pull him away.

"None of it," Eri said. "The girl lives with us, you think we wouldn't give her every piece of merch we've got?"

Neku grimaced. "I was afraid of that."

Yeah, the poor boy had no clue what to do now. It was time to take pity on him.

"What do you think, Shiki?" Eri asked. "Change of plans to help Nekie find the right gift?"

Shiki pretended to consider that, though her mind was almost surely made up from the start. "That's fine with me. We know more about what Shoka likes, so I'm sure we can find something before too long."

"You girls don't have to…" Neku began.

"Yeah, but we're gonna," Eri said. "Now come on, there are plenty of stores for us to check out."

They shopped late into the evening, and that was perfectly reasonable.

"I'm never asking you two for help shopping again," Neku said, dragging his feet and faux groaning. The boy was stronger than he looked, a little shopping wouldn't hurt him.

"You found the perfect present, didn't you?" Shiki asked. "These things take time if you want to do them properly, Neku!"

"Still, I'll go on my own next time."

Eri grinned. "You always say that, yet here you are."

Wait, why did Shiki and Neku look confused? This was practically routine for them by now. The looks only lasted a second before they smiled, so maybe Eri had imagined them?

I'm not overworking myself, am I? I don't think I am.

Chances were she had simply misinterpreted. Moving on from that, Eri hefted her bags. "Plus, who else gives us an excuse to go shopping and get some nice goodies?"

"Oh, I don't know." Eri could hear the amusement in Shiki's voice. "I'm sure we could rope Beat into coming with us next time."

"Good luck with that," Neku said. At this point, they had reached the train station, so he waved an arm in farewell. "See you two tomorrow?"

"Definitely," Shiki said. "We'll meet at the usual spot!"

They kissed, and Eri firmly told herself that the pang in her stomach was from hunger. She had to move on. Shiki had chosen Neku, and Eri wanted both of them to be happy. In time she would find someone else, and her crush on Shiki would be a thing of the past.

A buzz from her phone interrupted her thoughts. Eri pulled it out of her jacket's pocket and read the message.

"Shoka just got home," she announced. "She's asking if she should make dinner for us."

Shiki pulled away from Neku to answer. "Tell her I'll handle it when we get home. She deserves some time to relax between school and work."

Nodding, Eri typed out a quick reply. Shoka had been living with them for a few months now, and their apartment was much more lively from the company. There was enough space for all of them, with two bedrooms and bathrooms, along with a decently sized kitchen. Shiki and Eri had to share a room, but Eri certainly wasn't complaining.

There were a few final goodbyes before Shiki and Eri left Neku to get on the train. Their apartment was right outside Shibuya, so it would be a short ride.

"I'll have to get to sewing after dinner," Shiki muttered as they took the last seats and the train began to move. "Then I'll try to sketch out the leggings."

Eri raised an eyebrow. "What about sleep? You know, that thing humans need about 8 hours of every night?"

Shiki blushed. Eri was three for three!

"I can stay up a little later than normal tonight," Shiki said. "I'll be fine, really."

"No way. Let me handle the sketch, okay?"

"But—"

"No buts! We split the work between us, remember? Gatto Nero wouldn't be possible without the two of us working together! That means I get to help you when you have a heavy burden, and you do the same for me."

The smile Shiki gave her made her heart skip a beat. "Alright, you've made your point. You can—"

A horrible screeching sound interrupted her words. At the same time, Eri felt the world lurch around her, throwing her off the seat. Shouts arose all around her, but even they couldn't drown out the crashing and screeching.

"Eri!" Eri distantly heard Shiki's voice, just as a hand tightly gripped her arm and helped her up. Rising, Eri could see outside the windows, but the scenery was no more than a blur. The train had derailed!

"Shiki!" Eri held onto her friend to dear life. People were pushing each other aside, screaming and running even though there was nowhere to run. Eri would not lose her best friend in the chaos!

It was a futile effort, though, as another lurch caused their hands to come loose, throwing them in opposite directions. Eri had just enough time to see Shiki get swallowed up in the crowd as she fell.

No, Shiki!

At that moment, Eri hardly noticed the danger. The train was coming to a stop dangerously fast, but that didn't matter. She had to find Shiki!

A second later, she did. Before she could even think about what she was doing, Eri threw herself over her friend, wrapping her arms around her. If anything happened, Eri would take the blow, not Shiki.

All that panic couldn't have lasted more than a few seconds. It finally came to a halt when the train crashed, throwing everyone around like rag-dolls. Eri squeezed Shiki as tight as she could, even as glass shattered and fell onto them. When they hit the wall of the train, Eri cushioned the blow for Shiki.

She wasn't so lucky, her head slamming full force into the wall. There was no time for her to feel pain, as her vision instantly faded. Right after, her consciousness vanished as well.

Only to come back a split second later.