JUST LIKE HEAVEN

2 months after Asura

"Really? Crona, that's great news. I'm happy for you!" Maka pulled her friend in for a hug, which they didn't fight but didn't reciprocate, and when she pulled back she felt, rather than saw, the apprehension on Crona's face.

"I don't know how to deal with this!"

She heard the term more often than not with Crona, and it usually slipped out when they were unsure of how others would recieve them. While it was slow going, they had slowly become a bit more outspoken - if only when they were around Maka. Crona had even managed to correct Maka on their pronouns once, and they were relieved to see that Maka was, yet again, accepting of anything and everything that they had shown her. They were grateful for a friend like her, and they were also grateful for the other friends they had.

Black*Star had told Crona, on more than one occassion, that he would deal with anyone who so much as spoke against them. Crona had also began warming up to Soul the more they spent time together at their apartment with Maka. Most of all, Crona had cherished their friendship with Agnes and Rudy. Though they didn't see each other often, the pair always offered greetings to them and they even tried to help Crona with homework when Maka drew a blank. Agnes was methodic, easily showing Crona how to execute a move the proper way. They had turned to Rudy to help tame Ragarok, which she had gleefully accepted.

But there was apprehension still inside them, something telling them that they shouldn't move in with the sisters.

Maka was trying to convince Crona that this was one of those times that their anxiety may be taking over. While she validated the fact that there is something a bit strange about the two, she also confided in Crona that she trusted Rudy as a close friend, and that there was no possible way that she, or her sister, would do anything to harm them in any way.

"Crona, you'll be fine. They invited you to move in, right? That means they want to be around you, they like you!" Crona ducked their head, eyes darting around the hallway as they headed towards the exit of the school. They didn't want to get their hopes up; after all, Crona knew they were a handful. Agnes and Rudy seemed nice enough, but could they take the time to deal with Crona?

Maka flicked them on the forehead, a smile still on her face. She was hopeful for them, knowing that it was hard for Crona to open up and make friends. It made her think back to when they first came here - everyone had welcomed them, taken them into their group and they accepted Crona with no fuss. Agnes, while indifferent, and Rudy, who was much too enthusiastic, seemed to get along well enough with not only Crona, but also Ragnarok. Maybe being around polar opposites would help Crona find their comfort zone.

Crona spoke up as they passed the mission board, suggesting they do another mission together when Maka and Soul had the time. She told them that they could pick out a mission tomorrow before class, discussing some of the missions displayed, when Soul showed up. Maka berated him for making her wait, but after hitting him a few times and some groveling, she forgave him and the three began to head out from school.

"So, Crona, Rudy tells me she's anxiously awaiting your response. What's up, are you getting married?" Crona seemed to stiffen at the scythe's joking words, but not out of fear. They didn't want to make a decision - they enjoyed the quiet basement. But Maka had suggested that taking a few controlled risks was a good idea, and she was seldom wrong. After a few more minutes of walking Crona raised their head and looked ahead.

"I... I think I'll do it, Maka. I mean... They seem nice."

Soul grinned and put a firm hand on Crona's shoulder, which didn't tense, and Crona returned the gesture with a small smile. Soul knew that Rudy had been wanting to talk with Crona, and he didn't think she'd actually get the guts to ask them to live with her. He also knew that Maka was worried about her friend -she was worried about a lot of things currently- getting out into the world again and taking risks. This was definitely a step in the right direction.

"Oh! Soul, we should do a mission with Crona soon. I said we could pick one out tomorrow, before class." Soul shrugged, but with prompting(read: Maka Chop) from Maka he affirmed their plans, hoping she wouldn't have him try to answer anymore questions. The walk down the stairs was accompanied with a comfortable silence, and without a word in protest, Maka and Soul walked Crona to their new home.

Agnes and Rudy didn't live very far from the school - they actually lived fairly close to Soul and Maka, but their sense of direction lead everyone to believe they lived on the other side of town. The familiar student-housing was almost intimidating to Crona, but lead by the ever-confident Maka and her faithful Soul, they climbed the stairs to what seemed like the same door as every other door. With a quick 3 knocks, Rudy answered the door with a big grin on her face. She shot out of the house, hanging around Crona's neck.

"Oh, I'm so excited! You showed up! Please, come in, come in!" Maka held up her hand, making Rudy stop the process of shoving Ragnarok's head through the threshold of the front door, an unwilling Crona attached.

"I'm sorry, but we have to go meet Justin for training. Crona, will you be alright?"

She looked into their eyes, waiting to see the small collapse of Crona's willpower, only to see it standing firm. There was hesitation, but with a quick nod, their eyes softened and Crona nodded at her. They allowed themselves to be corraled into the home, and with one last wave, Rudy closed the door slowly. She turned to her sister, who was lounging on the couch, and motioned to Crona and Ragnarok looking around the under-furnished home.

"They're gonna live with us!"

Her sister sat up and glared at Rudy, Crona shrinking back in fear while Rudy stood, unwavering. They wondered what they had gotten themselves into when Agnes stood.

"What do you mean, 'they're gonna live with us'?" Her voice was very quiet and Rudy immediately tried to console Agnes, but the excuses fell on deaf ears as her sister began to approach the two quickly, speaking in angry Chinese. Rudy's voice wavered in every response, though Agnes stopped short of the three with her sister's final answer. She hummed in irritation before shifting her gaze to Crona, then Ragnarok.

"Alright, your room doesn't have a bed. We'll get you one in a day or two -we would have had one if she had told me you would be moving in- but you're welcome to sleep on a couch out here. We're also a bit... lacking in appliances." Crona actually smiled at her, making Agnes take a small step back. They didn't care about small appliances, this apartment had some sort of character to it that made it feel like a home.

Rudy seemed to take to painting on the walls, strange and fluid designs in the kitchen. There were also quite a few pictures taped to the walls, all of them including at least two other people that they knew. Crona even spied a few pictures of themself and Ragnarok standing with Maka and Soul. The room that was supposed to be theirs was all the way down the hall, and it wasn't any more than 10x10 but it had the only window in the apartment. They looked out for a few moments, watching the sun dip lower in the sky before smiling to themselves.

This was a good idea.

Maka had relented and got on the back of Soul's bike, knowing it was faster to where they needed to go. She shouted over the sound of the engine roaring and the wind ripping past them, asking Soul if he thought Crona would be alright. She watched him nod before he swerved around a small ditch and she sighed, relaxing against him. She felt exhausted, she hadn't been sleeping very well ever since her mother's initial visit. Since then, Kami had visited two times, once to apologize with a dress and by making dinner, and a second time to ask Maka to join her on a trip to Egypt; she had declined, which Kami confessed she expected such an answer.

It wasn't long before they reached the wooded area where Justin Law was waiting for them - the sun would be going down soon, and the shadows of the trees swirled around them in an eerie way. He asked Maka to try and transform - to his amazement, she managed to turn her arm into a dull, black blade. While she still couldn't fully transform, he knew they were very close to figuring it out.

"When will I be able to fully transform?" She asked while turning her arm back. Justin hummed for a second before looking at Soul, asking what he felt. Soul knew they were going to get there soon, and he considered telling them that he could have it done tonight, but stopped himself.

"Maybe another week." He said with a shrug; Justin looked at them curiously before smiling widely. He informed them he would leave them alone for a bit, wanting to go look for a few more hidden gems in the DWMA library. As they heard the last echos of his bike, they sat down on the sandy grass. Maka reached out and took both of his hands in hers, a tentative smile on her face. Soul looked at her, questioningly, before she drew a deep breath.

"Can I ask you why you have failed to apologize for kissing me, then leaving me the other night? Before we do this." He tried to withdraw his hands, an effort to distance himself from her, but she held firm. He felt sweat bead on his forehead and he closed his eyes, breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth.

"I wasn't sure how you would react, honestly."

"You had Kid throw an extravagant party specifically to apologize for being an idiot jerk to me, and then you go and act like an idiot jerk! I feel like you didn't learn anything from the first time around." She released one of his hands and grabbed his shirt, pulling him to her and kissing him - it was brief, and he had no time to process it before she pulled away, looking him right in the eyes.

"You need to have a little more faith in me, and yourself." Soul was watching her with wide eyes for a long time; he blinked a few times before laughing and nodding his head.

"Yeah, okay. I'll give it a shot." He gave her his hand this time and they smiled at each other before closing their eyes. Slowly, the woods around them fell away to just them, sitting there. He could only see the light glow of her soul and his, which merged into one. He was familiar with this process, and he navigated his way to where he had been working the other day. A large scythe was tied down by multiple ropes, though the ropes were straining from Soul's previous efforts. He reached down and he slowly, but firmly, began to pull.

The ropes creaked and groaned, but he felt as though they would never release the weapon. He often wondered if it wasn't worth trying, but Maka's words rang in his head. He needed to have more faith in her. In both of them. He continued to tug and pull, two hours passing as he struggled against her soul's bonds. He knew he would have to give this a break soon, but as the thought crossed his mind, every rope snapped and the weapon turned to ash in his hands.

It had been hard.

Maka had fought the hardest battle of her life only two months ago. After taking the time to repair her body while in a coma, she struggled to remember who she was, and what her purpose was. She had awoken to her partner, the one who had been by her side when she saw no one for miles, the one who waited for her while she toiled away inside herself. Maka pushed herself, maybe a bit harder than she should have, to get better as fast as possible.

She remembered her first time meeting Agnes and Rudy, and her impressions of them both. She remembered trying to teach them a better basketball technique, even though she was rather clueless herself. Maka had gone back to school, only to find that nothing had changed -she was even still the top student in EAT class. She had gone on a mission with Agnes and Rudy, she had even gone with Kim and Jacqueline on arguably the easiest mission in her career, before going out on her own.

Clearer than the rest of her memories was the visit of her mother, and with it came a zephyr of emotions ranging from anger to disillusionment. It had taken its toll on her, the animosity that lingered between her and Kami. Still, Maka distracted herself from it every turn. busying herself with training and school work. She found herself taken under Justin Law's tutelage, training her in the art of self-wielding so she would make sure she didn't hurt anyone, or accidentally hurt herself.

Her memories poured over him vividly as he was ejected quickly from her soul, only to be deafened by her screaming and an invisible force ripping trees from the ground around her. There was a blue arch of pure energy around her, lightning striking out and hitting her skin. There were blades shooting from every inch of her body, tearing skin and the wounds sealing shut with beads of black blood. Her screams never stopped, and all he could do was alternate his incredulous gaze between her and his hands.

This wasn't supposed to happen.