Notes:
Shout out to the crew at the Saga Pride discord server for helping with editing and beta-reading
Hot water rained down heavily from above. The faucet hissed as a thin layer of steam filled the room, fogging up the mirror's glass. Standing in the downpour immediately warmed Ai up from the cold. Where droplets hit, her makeup was washed away, leaving trails of contrasting colors in its wake. Slowly, the lively, pastel peach she disguised herself in was stripped away, leaving nothing but the decayed green of a corpse. But really by this point, the shock and horror of it all had left her undisturbed by the body she now inhabited. There wasn't much time to consider her Frankensteinian existence when she was already having a difficult time keeping herself awake and focused on her shower.
The drive out from Saga Arena had been long and tiring. Like most performances, the girls weren't released until well into the night. It had taken a while to get them detached from the arena's microphones and equipment. Not to mention having to reload the van with all their possessions as well: Tae's drums, Ai's scooter, the remains of Kotaro's guitar swept up from the stage. By the time they were all buckled into their seats, everyone was dead(er) on their feet. It was all Ai could do to keep her eyes open. She had stared out the window as they drove, watching traces of city lights flashing by as they all sat in weary silence. It was calming actually, the serene and comforting feeling of heading home at the end of a long and busy night. It was something she usually savored during her living days, but it was nonetheless draining now. She was happy to let the last of her burdens wash off her mind and finally relax.
She exited the bathroom in fresh bandages and pajamas with a towel around her shoulders to keep her hair from dripping onto her neck. The house was quiet, enough so that her muffled footsteps were audible against the carpet. Ai had been the last one into the bathroom shared by the seven of them. Considering she had done the least work of anyone today, it was only fair. As such, she was probably also the last one to be roaming around at this hour. Most of the girls were already asleep in their futons and those that weren't, were in preparation to do so. If she ran into anyone, she expected it to maybe be Tae, emerging from the kitchen with an evening snack, or perhaps Yugiri brushing through Lily's hair before bed. Instead however, she caught the curious sight just out of the corner of her eye. Down the low-lit hallway, someone snuck out the back door, closing it gently behind them.
There wasn't a reason to be suspicious necessarily. All of them were free to go wherever they like, assuming they didn't scare any humans in the process. Even still, Ai found herself following them out into the dark.
Everything was still. A chorus of cricket songs echoes around her. The only movement was the grass brushing against Ai's legs as she wandered on. The miniscule nightlight caught in the trees, shrouding her path in shadows, but the stars guided her forward until she finally came across someone.
Junko sat in a clearing alone. Her arms were wrapped around her knees and her head tilted up, staring at the sky. Her figure was silhouetted in the darkness. Pale moonlight glinted in her red eyes and illuminated the silver of her hair, causing it to shimmer each time the breeze carried it forward. Kotaro liked to compare them to nocturnal pests like racoons when their eyes reflected back at him, but in the right setting, she thought it could also be pretty.
Treading more carefully now that she was better able to see, Ai found her way to Junko's side and sat down delicately next to her. "What are you doing out here?"
The timid girl glanced over in surprise. She hadn't heard Ai approach but the company wasn't unwelcome. Her eyes softened when she recognized the voice. A small smile came to her lips before she turned her gaze back and answered pensively, "Just getting some fresh air. It's nice to unwind after a long day."
Ai nodded lethargically. "I know what you mean." she sympathized, leaning back on her hands. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. The cool air nipped at her nose and burned her lungs refreshingly. Then suddenly, she pulled out her arms from under her and collapsed fully onto the ground with a muted thud. "I'm exhausted."
She heard Junko giggle before laying down besides her with a light rustling. "It was a very stressful performance, yes."
"Was it?" Ai asked, tracing a constellation with her eyes. "The girls weren't nervous, were they?"
"They were, but that was mainly my fault." she admitted. "I'm afraid I'm not as good of a leader as you."
Although it was hidden from Junko's view, Ai's face twisted in confusion. "I don't know why you would say that." she stated bluntly.
Junko started to reply, but was cut off when Ai continued on.
"The show you put on was amazing, just like I knew it would be, and it was because you were there, Konno Junko."
Wind continued to whistle through the trees, occasionally blowing leaves through their line of sight. They could only be seen through the pathway they blocked the stars or when they landed atop one of them. Ai thought she might have felt one brush up against her hand for a moment.
"I'm happy you feel that way." Junko answered softly. "I thought it was a very important concert to show what we were capable of." She continued. "And to stand above those Tokyo girls." A touch of resentment slipped into her voice by the end. Ai found it amusing.
Even without the falling foliage, their view of the sky wavered. A small collection of clouds that had been present in the distance had slowly made its way over to them. They now drifted lazily in front of the moon, stealing away what little light they had. But even without the ability to see, Ai was still able to reach out and find Junko's hand in the darkness to take it into hers.
"I think it had the impact you were looking for."
It was kind of odd, she thought. They were dead and their bodies didn't function by most measures. They didn't really need to breath or eat. Their hearts didn't beat. They could remove their heads without any problems and put them back on just as easily. It was questionable how they were even able to move in such unanimated corpses. But somehow, outside in the middle of a cold night, the touch of Junko's skin felt warm and alive. And somehow when she held her hand back, it was even warmer.
They stayed like that for a while, content to just decompress after a long day together. Counting all the small sparkling dots above her, Ai could see why Junko liked to stargaze to relax sometimes. It was maybe a little corny for her taste, but the appeal was clear. It was exactly the kind of thing she'd expect Junko to do from time to time. She could imagine her like, running along the beach dramatically when she was upset or sitting on the roof playing music, singing out her feelings. She was old-fashioned and sentimental like that. Her heart was soft, sensitive enough to feel things very strongly, even if perhaps reality didn't quite call for such reaction.
"You know there was never any chance of me leaving, right?" She blurted out suddenly, her tone insinuating that the answer had been obvious from the start.
Junko hummed thoughtfully. "You know, Sakura said the same thing. She does a good impression of you actually."
"She was right." Ai nagged
"She was." she agreed. "Still, I wanted to give you a good reason to stay."
Ai resisted the urge to scoff. "You don't have to worry. There's nowhere I'd rather be than on stage with you guys."
If she didn't know better, she thought she might have heard someone chuckle just lowly enough to be drowned out by the wind. However, that would be quite a silly thing for someone to do when Ai was so clearly correct, so she ignored it.
The sky continued to disappear behind an incursion of cloud coverage. The beautiful celestial bodies that previously speckled the black emptiness vanished one by one.
"It's a shame it's cloudy tonight"
"I heard that there might be a storm tonight" Junko stated with slight worry in her voice, holding onto Ai's hand just a bit tighter.
She scowled at the clouds overhead. She'd be lying if she said the thought didn't unnerve her. "Well" she began hesitantly before turning to look at her partner. "It's okay if it does. You said you'd back me up, right?"
Junko met her gaze. The small raises of her stitches threw strange shadows on her face but the fondness in it was evident nonetheless. "Of course." Her eyes flickered and crinkled in the corners as she smiled assuredly. They didn't make a bad replacement for the stars.
By now, Ai was forced to acknowledge something she'd been trying not to for a while. It was an uncomfortable feeling, one she'd wanted to suppress; scared of how it might change the way Junko thought of her right now. However, after everything that'd happened tonight, there just wasn't anything she could do to hold it back anymore. Her body moved without her permission and despite her best efforts, Ai finally let a huge shiver run down her spine.
She felt Junko perk up immediately. "Are you cold?"
"Maybe just a little?" Unfortunately for her, it was already too late to lie.
Junko moved to touch her forehead, trying to disprove Ai's fib and discovered an even more inexcusable crime. "Is your hair still wet!"
Ai grumbled feeble protests, but the damage was done. She was in trouble.
Junko stood and indignantly pulled the offender to her feet. "We have to get you inside. You're going to catch a cold!"
"I don't think we can get colds…" Ai argued dispassionately, allowing herself to be dragged away like a delinquent
Making her way towards the house, Junko fussed back at her, "Well we're not going to find out!"
Their soft bickering could be heard until the two eventually retreated indoors. The door clicked shut behind them, leaving nature to whisper on to itself quietly, the only witness to their meeting. The weather moved on to its next destination, allowing the cosmos to reveal themselves once again, and Ai spent the night covered in extra blankets to keep her safety warm while she slept. The thought of Junko helped too.
Notes:
To anyone reading this through and wondering how, through all the wind and evening chill, Ai could lay in the wet grass with wet hair and only her pjs without being cold, she was very cold. Literally so cold the entire time, about to freeze over like Tae in the mountains, chilled down to the fucking bone. But there was a cute girl outside so she held out for as long as she could goddamn it
I spent a lot of time describing the setting and stuff this time around. There was a specific mood I was trying to invoke. I wanted it to feel like just getting home after the high school dance with your date when you both really want to stay up and continue enjoying each other's company but its just way too late for it, so you end up going to bed imagining what else you might have done if you had the time. I don't know if that's a very relatable experience, but most of my high school dances ended in sleepovers with friends at my girlfriend's house. I remember them being really quiet and intimate in that way. That's what I imagine the tone was after Saga Arena, emotions running high but energy running low. That's okay though. I'm sure they'll find time to pick up where they left off some other day.
