#i just saw nico and rin fall off a cliff | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lonelypond · 4 years

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Idols

Love Live x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 3.9K, 1/2

This is entirely your fault, Tumblr ; )

Out skating one day, Yazawa Nico, Kousaka Honoka, Hoshizora Rin, and Sonoda Umi are accidentally exposed to a mutagenic gel, causing Umi's werewolf traits to be transmuted to the other three. A year later, they find themselves in trouble again as they meet four individuals who know a lot about mutations. And pizza.

Practice Interupted

The sheer shiny cliffs of buildings surrounded Sonoda Umi, the moon a cool silver slash in the sky, her ears alert for any sound. They were meeting here tonight, for meditation practice, now, when the influence of the moon was slim, controllable. Nothing about the three young women who Umi was expecting was controllable, so she had to settle for what she could.

“Hey, Nico, there’s a car! Watch it.” Kosaka Honoka’s voice shouted from the west and Umi turned in that direction.

“Nico Nico Ni!” There was the high, shrill call of Yazawa Nico’s battle cry and Umi could see in her mind the tiny, twin tailed tornado torque off the front of a car or slide under a truck or some severely dangerous manuever.

“Wait for me, Nico!” And there was Rin, about to catch up, speed past, and do something even stupider than Nico had done. Umi sighed. Her life was now inextricably linked with those three maniacs and the burden was on her, since she had burdened them with her curse.

A Year Ago

“C’mon Umi, this is boring. I told Nico and Rin I’d meet them at the skatepark.” Honoka whined, her t-shirt untucked from her board shorts, her hair shoved under a backwards snapback.

“You are going to flunk more than half of your midterms if you do not allocate several days for study.”

“Umi, I’m bored, I had to sit in class all day and now, Rin’s got a cool tricks she’s showing off that I need to learn.”

“What you need to learn is how to conjugate verbs in English.”

Honoka rolled her eyes, “Been there, bored that.”

“That doesn’t even make sense.”

Honoka bit into a pastry and then stuck her tongue out at Umi, before sending her board rolling ahead. “See you at the park.” And Honoka hopped on her board and sped away.

Umi snarled. She could feel her anger rising. She glanced up at the sky. Still late afternoon, not yet moonrise. Maybe she could talk some sense into Honoka. Umi centered her chi, did three deep breaths, and then took off at a steady jog for the skating bowl Rin, Nico, and Honoka preferred.

###

Yazawa Nico was all set. Tokyo Olympics coming up, skateboarding was a full fledged, medal event, and Yazawa Nico was on track to level up her skills to crack the competitive circuit. Add charm, cuteness, and an unparalleled knowledge of the skate scene and Nico was about to make a HUGE splash, launching her own clothing line next month. Honoka’s best friend, Kotori had helped out and the custom shirts and bandanas were going to be seen in TWIG skating videos worldwide.

“Hey, Nico.” Rin hissed in her ear, sliding next to where Nico was sitting on the lip of the bowl.

“Yo?”

“That girl” RIn pointed to a tall redhead in jeans and a tight gray polo shirt, “keeps taking pictures of you. I think she’s in my grade.”

Nico leaned back and yes, there was a redhead with an actual camera, not just a phone, circling the skate park, pausing to kneel or lie down or prop herself at an odd angle to snap a shot. She saw Nico looking and startled, nearly dropping her camera.

“Hot.” Nico thought, then smiled, “Hey, if you want Nico to pose for you just say so.” Nico bounced up, dropped her board, and rocked an ollie into a nosegind, to pop up in front of the girl.

“I...I’m...you’re just here and I...have…” the girl seemed to be choking on air and waved her camera in Nico’s direction instead of finishing her sentence. Long eyelashes blinked over shimmering lavender pools.

Nico kicked her board up, flexing as she caught the nose, glad she’d worn a tank top. Sweaty though. But she’d pulled off a sweet move.

“What’s your TWIG? Tag Nico when you post your snaps. @NicoNollie.” Nico stepped forward and the taller girl tried to step back, but nearly fell over a huuba ledge. Nico reached out her arm and pulled the girl in close. She smelled like flowers. Nico stared into wide, surprised eyes, and then felt herself falling back when the girl shoved her.

“Hey!” Nico screamed as she dropped her board and rolled down the bowl slope, scraping her elbow.

“I didn’t ask you to touch me.” The girl pouted.

“Maki!” Rin yelled suddenly. “Nishikino Maki. We have study hall together. You say hi to Kayo-chin sometimes.”

The girl turned, eyes narrowed, “I don’t know you.”

“But you know my best friend, Kayo-chin? She’s in all your smart classes. Glasses, cute, super super smart.”

“Koizumi?”

Rin nodded as Nico pulled herself back up to ground level, glaring at her assailant, while she wiped her elbow, “Where’s the first aid kit?”

Rin shrugged, “So you skate, Maki?”

“No.”

“Want to skate? We can teach you.” Rin offered as Nico sat with her legs hanging down, wincing as she put an alcohol rub she'd found in her pocket on the scrape.

“No.” Maki opened her camera bag, settling her Fuji inside.

“So why are you taking pictures of Nico and then injuring Nico when she saves you from falling?” Nico awkwardly placed a cute bunny bandaid over her wound.

Maki glanced away, crossing her arms, one hand reaching up to play with her hair, “Had to take sports pictures for class.”

“And skateboarding is the best sport.” Nico’s voice boomed with approval.

Maki shrugged, “I like that girls and guys skate the same. And I didn't have enough time to hit the surfing spots.”

“Nico surfs.” Nico announced.

Rin glanced down, puzzled, “Since wh…”

Nico’s elbow connected at bruising speed with Rin’s shin.

“Nico?!??!!”

“Just shut it, Rin.” Nico stood up, stepping up to Maki, “So did when you post the snaps of Nico’s favorite tricks, you’ll tag Nico.” There was a pause as Nico levelled a serious glare at the photographer, “Right?”

Maki shrugged, turning away from Nico. Nico’s hand shot out, grabbed Maki’s shoulder and spun the other girl back to face her, “Right?”

Maki tensed, ready to open her mouth for a rant when a crouching body on a board zoomed between them.

“Save me, Nico. I’m not fast enough.”

“Honoka, what the hell…”

“She’s after me, Nico. She’s going to ruin everything!” Honoka 180'ed and hopped off next to Nico.

“What’s happening?” Maki asked, wondering if she should just leave.

“Her’ Nico grabbed Honoka by the back of the shirt, “ninja bff is about to drag her off to study.”

“You have to save me Nico!”

“Nico has her own problems.”

“Honoka.” Umi’s voice, though calm, carried. And then a siren blared, startling all the girls clustered around the skate bowl.

“You can’t make me study.” Honoka shouted.

“Let Honoka go, Nico.” Umi slowed, hands on hips, glaring at Honoka.

“Gladly.” Nico dropped Honoka, brushing her hands together.

“This happens all the time, Maki.” Maki was surprised to find Rin suddenly next to her, chatting as if they talked every day.

“I don’t really see how it affects me.”

“Nico never studies either. But then her Mom gets on her. Nico’s got it tough. Her dad died and she’s the big sis.”

“I don’t really care.” Maki was fascinated by the energetic gestures Nico was throwing around as she mediated between the other two girls.

“Anyway, Nico’s the best and I bet you got cool photos.” Rin gleamed, “Can’t wait to see them.”

“I don’t even know you." Maki rolled her eyes at her conversation partner.

Rin had a bright idea, “Hey, sit with us at lunch. Kayo-chin would love that. Aren’t you usually by yourself?”

Maki frowned, it sounded like she had no friends, but she just liked to play games on her phone without interruption and this Rin seemed to be all interruptions. “I’m fine. It’s not…”

And before Maki could finish her sentence or Umi could strangle Honoka, an out of control motorcycle with a glowing canister strapped to the back vroomed toward them. Nico leapt for Maki and Rin, an arm around each of them, pulling them down in the bowl. As the bleeding driver fell off and the cycle forced Umi and Honoka to roll after Nico, the canister broke free, spilling a viscous gel across everyone but Maki, who watched in horror from where Nico had pushed her as the other girls thashed and screamed.

BACK TO NOW

Umi frowned. This was worse than she expected. Nico’s head was cocked at the angle for ultimate sassiness, her fur ears forward, alert, and smug. Ruby eyes flickered between dare and amusement. Nishikino Maki, who had not been invited to tonight’s session, was sitting on the edge of the roof, doing a terrible job of hiding her amusement at Umi looming over a smug Nico.

“This is not a date night, Yazawa."

“We’re not dating.” Nico and Maki echoed. Rin giggled, her ginger tail swaying.

Umi rolled her eyes, “You need to get serious about your training, Nico. You remember what happened last month?”

Nico’s confidence dented slightly, “No one was hurt.”

Honoka was perched next to Maki, glad Umi was lecturing someone else tonight, “I don’t know, Nico. A lot of people might have wanted to eat ice cream and you wiped out the whole freezer section.” Honoka’s grin showed her full set of fangs.

Umi sighed and addressed herself to Maki, who was usually responsible, “Did Nico drag you here?”

“Mrs. Yazawa came home early so I didn’t have to watch Nico’s brothers and sisters. So I was bored.” Maki shrugged.

“Maki needs to learn self control anyway, so she doesn’t yell at cute little Nico so often.” Nico winked.

“Maybe if cute little Nico didn’t stalk every girl who said something about how cute her ears are, I wouldn’t have to. You’re supposed to be discrete.”

“I have to agree with M…” Umi started.

“People think it’s cosplay, Nico’s gimmick, super duper cute.” Nico raised her hands to her temple, “Nico Nico Ni, Nico wins EVERY popularity contest.”

“Not mine.” Maki muttered.

“It is supercute. If we had to catch something from Umi,” Rin said as she grabbed at her bobbing tail, “I’m glad it was furriness.”

“You didn’t ‘catch’ furriness, Rin.” Maki stated. “Exposure to the mutagen caused your dna to alter, influenced by Umi’s lycanthropy.”

“Well, I like my tail.” Rin slapped the back of Maki’s head with it as Maki snarled.

“Too bad you didn’t get anything cute.” Rin teased.

Umi sighed. This session had gotten out of control even faster than usual. Her exposure to the mutagen had caused her hair to grow all the way down her back, her wolf ears present every day, not just during the days around the full moon. And the full array of animal senses Umi could never turn off, so she could sense so much more than anyone was willing to confess. Even if Nico and Maki refused to admit they were dating, their scent profiles and pheremones screamed it loud enough that Umi wanted them living several states apart. And Umi could feel her own attraction to Honoka, as well as the need to wrestle with the fact that Honoka had yet to mature fully. Rin also remained in a state of innocence, friendly to everyone, and very attached to Koizumi, but not yet ready for...Umi couldn’t even think the words in her mind...adult things. Eager for a distraction, she focused on Nico, who was watching Maki shove Rin away from her. Nico watching Maki was one of her few calm states so Umi hated to break the mood, but maybe they could transition to meditation. Or at least a few breathing exercises.

“Everybody on their feet. We’re going to start with warmups.” Not too much grumbling as the three settled into their starting pose. Umi nodded at Maki, “If you’re here, you work out with us, Maki.”

Maki considered, but instead of making a show of protest, joined Nico where she was standing behind Rin and Honoka. Nico suddenly became much more focused on her positioning, her posture improving almost immediately. Maybe Maki being here would be a boon.

Something metallic zinged by Umi’s ear. She whirled, reaching for a weapon she didn’t have. Nico’s voice screeched behind her, “MAKI!”

Umi was too busy searching for the threat to look behind her, but from the sounds, she guessed the dart had hit Maki, who had fallen, to be caught by Nico’s quick reflexes. So Nico was busy. Umi inhaled. 10 warriors, encircling the roof. “Rin, grab my bag. Honoka, to me. Nico…”

“Got her.” Nico said before Umi could finish.

Rin tossed weapons to everyone and Umi started the mental meditation that would allow her wolf side to take over completely. It had become so much easier since the accident to slip into the body that only the full moon used to summon. Nico would transform when she was angry, so Umi was teaching her restraint, and with Rin and Honoka, it seemed to be a random thing, more of a joy than a burden. But since as young as she could remember, Umi’s training at the Sonoda Dojo had been about controlling her animal side, so the others just opening freely to the change was a puzzle.

Umi readied her stance, gripped her no-dachi in her thumbed paws, and parried the first blow. Figures in black rushed her, trying to surge around her. Rin was at her right, with a katana, Honoka a little further to left so her naginta could use its full range. They were the wall protecting Maki.

And then out of the sky came commentary. “Hey, look, Leo, creepy ninjas vs. samurai furries. Are we in a video game?”

A more commanding voice stage whispered, “Quiet.”

And then a deeper, rolling grumble, “Yeah, Mikey, you’re blowing our surprise attack”

“Nah, these guys are even stupider than…”

“You?” the grumble hissed as three green blocky figures dropped in front of Umi, ninja weapons flashing as they pushed the attackers back.

“Hey, they’re girl samurai.” One of the newcomers stopped to stare long enough that Umi saw a simple, cloth, orange mask and a turtle shell. “Cool.”

“Umi.” Nico sounded panicked. “Maki’s not responding to me at all.”

A slash of the no dachi lamed an opponent and Umi stepped back to let Rin, Honoka, and two of the newcomers cover her as she fell back to Nico’s position.

“Is she breathing?”

“Barely.” Nico grimaced as she showed Umi a dart, “Poison?”

Umi sniffed, shaking her head, “Sedative. Might be too high a dose.”

Nico was blinking at a hyper sonic rate, to keep any tears from leaking out, “We’ve got to get her off the roof.”

“Can you and Rin carry her?”

Nico nodded.

“Rin. Help Nico.” Umi ordered.

Rin was there before Umi finished her sentence, raising Maki off the ground. And then ten more ninjas dropped in.

Nico, with a burst of adrenaline, bent down to swing Maki over her shoulder while Rin moved to intercept the first attacker. And then one of the turtles cartwheeled past Umi, grabbing Maki from Nico, and heading to the roof’s edge, the ninjas encircling them.

“Hey!” Nico shouted, pulling out her twin swords, cutting her way into the scrum.

A sudden flurry of arrows and shuriken flew toward them and then, with majestic poise, this turtle, head wrapped in a tattered red mask, froze, a surprised look on its face, and toppled forward. Before Nico could reach Maki, the creepy ninja scrum had grabbed Maki and gone over the roof. Nico watched them pull away in a van, and then collapsed on the roof edge, arms out, head hanging down, whispering “Maki.”

“Don’t worry, I put a tracker on their van.” A three fingered green hand grabbed the roof edge next to Nico, and a turtle face wearing a purple mask turned to smile at Nico. “I’m Donatello. Call me Donnie. These are my brothers. Why’d the Foot Clan kidnap your girlfriend?”

Nico lifted her head just barely enough to glare at the green face six inches from her nose, “Ask the Foot Clan.”

Donnie, jumped up on the roof, and pulled a pad out, with a green blip moving away from them. Nico grabbed it, “Umi, we have to follow them. Now.”

Umi was parrying three swords so Nico’s demand went unanswered. With a massive effort, Umi threw her opponents back, howled, and bashed each of them with the hilt, knocking them unconscious. Rin and Honoka had the rest tied up, with the help of the two conscious Turtles. Nico shoved the one who’d grabbed Maki with her foot as she pulled the dart from its shoulder, “They got this one with a dart too. Can we go rescue Maki now?”

“Hey, Leo, let’s take the Shellraiser.” the orange masked Turtle said as he put his weapons away.

“What’s a Shellraiser?” Rin and Honoka asked in unison and the Turtle waved them to the street side of the roof and pointed down at a subway car converted into some kind of travelling siege engine.

“Whoa!” Honoka

“Can I drive?”’ Rin bounced with excitement.

“No.” Nico had a grappling hook out and was about to drop off the roof. “Shotgun speeding.”

“Excuse me.” The blue masked Turtle held out its palm, in a stop gesture, “I’m the only driver. And we can rescue your friend.”

“Who even are you?” Nico glared, grappling hook ready to bash.

“Leonardo. Leo. These are my brothers, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael.”

“Sleeping Beauty.” The orange masked one snorted.

“The unemployable comedian is Mikey.” Donnie explained.

“Nico doesn’t care if you’re Ms. Zoo America. They took Maki.”

“Do you know why?” Leo asked.

“DO I CARE WHY?” Nico was screaming, her arms flailing as the grappling hook got closer to landing a secure grip in Leo's nostril. Then she pivoted, “Umi. Help Nico.”

“We are very pleased to meet fellow guardians of goodwill, but our friend’s situation appears to be urgent. So we have no time for non productive chatter.”

Nico checked the pad, her voice hitting a panicky high note. “They stopped. Which means whatever weird thing they’re going to do to Maki is about to start.” Nico paled, her ears slumping.

Umi stepped up to Leonardo, her hand out, “I will be commandeering your vehicle now.”

Nico was furled up, a low growl drawing the attention of the Turtles. They watched as she transformed, increasing in size until she became the size of a large bear, black fur covering her completely.

Mikey pushed Leonardo, “Leo’s the only one who gets to drive the Shellraiser, It’s a rule.”

"Shellraiser?" Raph sat up, rubbing his forehead. "We're saving the girl." Donnie whispered.

"Of course, I am." Raph pushed himself to his feet.

Nico ran to the edge of the roof and jumped off, metal groaning as she landed solidly on the roof of the shellraiser. Donatello glanced back at Leo, “I guess I’ll be reinforcing that. Hey, wait, she’s trying to claw her way in.”

Mikey grabbed the pad Nico had dropped, “Van’s on the move again.”

“Hey, did they drop off Maki?” Honoka asked.

Rin, slumped, suddenly terrified for her bff.

“I’m going down there before she wrecks my custom mods,” Raph said and vaulted down to the car.

Leo frowned, “That’s a multi car crash waiting to happen.”

“Agreed.” Umi sheathed her sword at her back. “We may need your help. If we have to check out the building and follow the van.”

“And save the werewolf’s girlfriend.” Mikey grinned.

There was an angry howl.

“What did she say?” Donatello wondered.

“A lie.” Rin stood, ginger fur covering her as she did, but retaining her bipedal status. She sprinted, leapt into the air, and landed like a cat on the hood. Nico huffed.

“Nico thinks we don’t know they’re dating.” Honoka said.

“Ha! Like nobody knows April dating me.”

“That’s not what’s happening, Donnie.” Mikey was standing on the roof edge, watching the scene below, and he winced as a large noise happened. “Oh wow. The furball just crushed a dumpster with Raph.”

Leo was tumbling toward the ground, Donatello following, using his staff to vault, Umi paused briefly to calculate the arc and speed of the leap necessary to land her near Nico. Honoka was standing next to Mikey, throwing air punches in support of Nico’s attempts to rip through the Shellraiser’s roof.

Leo pulled out the keys, jumped into the vehicle, and started the ignition. Nico howled. Umi landed lightly on the hood and strode toward the window. Leo wondered briefly if she was going to kick her way through the windshield, but then remembered she wasn’t Raph or Mikey.

“Nico.” Umi snapped. “Get inside.”

Nico snarled, claws crunching dents into the metal of the roof.

“This is boss.” Honoka said as she and Rin jumped into the Shellraiser right after Mikey, Donnie, and Raph.

“Fine, stay on the roof." Umi closed the side door behind her. “Drive.”

###

Nishikino Maki woke up, headachey, sore, groggy, shoulder throbbing. Where was Nico? The last thing she’d heard was Nico calling her name. She could smell cedarr incense and wood and nothing familiar. Opening her eyes slightly, she took in details of the room. Antique Japanese screens, incense burners on low tables, floor to ceiling glass facing the night cityscape. She could hear several voices, but no actual words. She tugged at her hands. Tied. Ankles too. Not gagged, but she wouldn’t want to be drawing attention to herself until she had a plan. She closed her eyes again and concentrated. Fingers on her right hand altered, paw and claws replacing fingers. Claws were much much better for slashing through rope. As often as she’d cursed Rin’s clumsiness in accidentally biting her and then bounding off during Rin’s first full moon transformation, the time Maki'd been putting in working through the mental exercises Nico always ranted about was going to pay off now. Perhaps she could slip out of here before she was discovered or needed to use her wolf abilities in a fight. She’d done so well at keeping them a secret, even from Nico, who had wondered occasionally about different scent mixes coming from Maki, but when Maki said, “it’s because I’m in love,’ Nico had blushed, fake grumped, and never mentioned it again. Nico hadn’t replied that she was in love too, but there had been a few extra hip bumps when they walked home. Right now, Maki was content to wait. She got to spend most of her extra time with Nico, and occasionally catch the smoldering glow in Nico’s beautiful carmine eyes when she thought Maki was preoccupied with something else. Maki knew Nico thought she wasn’t smart or rich or…something enough for Maki, but Maki was going to patiently nudge Nico until her fiercely talented future wife got tired of underestimating herself. Or couldn’t resist Maki’s charms anymore. Grinning as she freed her wrists, Maki carefully moved her bared claws to free her ankles. Still the low rumble of conversation. Too many people to take on without backup, but maybe if she could manage to sneak…

And then the windows shattered. Maki recognized the growl and her instincts took over, inner wolf becoming fully outer wolf to rush to Nico’s side.

A/N: This is entirely the fault of the anonymous Tumblr ask who said "all of them are werewolves."Truth to tell, I have had a really really busy stressful month that included the death of my wife's father, along with all the lives lost to Covid-19 and American's evil beating heart pumping systemic racism. And I'd bought a TMNT mask for wearing in public spaces, so I was in a Turtle mood, and started watching the animated series and here we are. I was going for episode pacing, so this initial effort is a two parter. I also feel like my writing has been wrenched out of the zone by everything and I really really just want to finish something cute and fun and kickass.Take care. I appreciate all of you who've read and/or commented and/or written and/or kudoed to keep this Love Live corner of the universe lively.

#Love Live #Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #NicoMaki #Nishikino Maki #yazawa nico #etc.#will add more tags later #cheers

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mackinmacki · 7 years

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I’ll Wait for You

Rating: K+

Word Count: 2312

Summary: Nico's running late, and even though Eli promised that she'd wait, Nico is determined to get home ASAP.

Pairing: NicoEli

Notes: Here we go, my first NicoEli, just like I said I’d do for my ship project. Based around the lyrics to I’ll Wait for You by Joe Nichols.

Link: (FFN) | (I'll Wait for You - Joe Nichols)

Gritting her teeth in frustration, Nico stared out the window in disbelief. The snow had really been coming down, and now it was stacked high as far as the eye could see. If she tried to walk through that blizzard, she'd be liable to get lost until Spring. That was why it would've been so much easier to take a plane back home. However, there was a little complication involving that snow...

Slamming her fist against the airport window, she whirled around and stormed back to the ticket desk, making sure to slam her fists against that as well. "Why the hell can't the planes take off?! It's just snow!" The poor woman behind the desk had already been subjected to Nico's tirade only a couple minutes before, so there wasn't anything new to tell.

"Ma'am, the snow is three feet deep out there. Our planes are grounded until further notice." That wasn't going to be good enough for Nico, though.

"Don't you guys have flamethrowers around here or something?! Use a shovel, I don't care!" The ticket lady had to exercise every ounce of her patience to avoid getting fired.

"Ma'am... We do not have any flamethrowers, and we do not have the manpower to shovel out all of that snow. You're just going to have to wait like the rest of the people here."

"No, fuck that." Grumbling, Nico whirled away from the desk and grabbed her phone. Everyone working her was useless. "An important idol like myself has no time to wait. I'm just going to drive home." The ticket lady quietly sighed in relief, hoping that this loud gremlin would drive off a cliff or something. As for that gremlin, she needed to call someone and let them know what was going on.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end sounded faint, like they were just waking up. "Nico?"

"Eli, darling, bad news." Nico's voice shook a little as she spoke, but she forced it away with her usual dosage of confidence. "The snow's really coming down and my flight's been grounded. Apparently they don't have flamethrowers here." She shot a glare at the ticket lady, who was no longer looking her way. "But I'm gonna rent a car and get home as fast as I can."

Her heart skipped a beat when Eli laughed on the other line. "Don't do anything foolish, Nico. You don't need to rush back with all that snow. I've waited before, you know?" Nico could almost sense Eli smiling, though she couldn't see her. "Remember last Christmas?"

"Ugh, do I ever." Nico groaned at the memory. "Rin got us pulled over by the cops when she climbed on top of my car and tried to surf on it."

"If I recall, you were the one who suggested she do it."

"Well why did she choose then to listen to me?" Okay, so maybe she'd been a bit at fault. Just a bit, though. The problem was the date: Christmas. She'd been late getting Rin back to her own family, and then later still getting to her own. When she got there, however, all of the presents were still wrapped. Everyone had waited until she got there before starting. "You all really didn't have to wait for me."

"We were going to wait, Nico. I've always waited for you every step of the way. Today's not going to be any different." Her voice was still faint, but it was full of warmth. "I'll wait for you, Nico."

"Mm... Alright, alright, I know you will, ya sap." They both laughed, then bid each other I love yous and goodbyes before hanging up. Immediately Nico's smile faded into a frown, her grip tightening slightly on her phone. Putting the device back into her purse, she raced off to luggage claims. She was getting back home, no matter what.

Nico shivered and huffed as she dragged her suitcase through three feet of snow. It was a lot more difficult than she'd let herself believe. She'd already tripped and fallen three times, but each time she jumped - well, struggled - right back up, grabbing her suitcase and trying again. It took way too long to reach the rental car place, but finally she made it, opening the door and collapsing inside with relief.

"Close the door! Were you raised in a barn?" An angry-looking woman glared at Nico from her seat, and even though she was already exhausted, Nico wanted to jump up and fight her. Unfortunately, that probably wasn't a good idea, so instead she acquiesced and dragged herself and her suitcase inside, with the door closing behind her.

"Who put a cactus in your pantie drawer?" She snarled, walking past her and over to the counter. "Excuse me? I need to rent a car."

"What? Out in this snowstorm?" The guy behind the counter stared at her incredulously. He didn't even know why they were open in the first place. "Are you crazy?"

"Yes. Now, are you gonna rent me a car or not?" Sighing, he shrugged and went to grab a set of keys. Technically he couldn't say no to her, so if she wanted to go out there and die, it was on her, not him. Whoever was her next of kin better have enough money to pay for the damages the car was sure to get, though.

After paying and signing the papers, Nico grabbed the keys and rushed back out into the snow, thanking the guy over her shoulder as she went. Once again she was forced to trudge through the disastrous weather, but her strides were purposeful as she kept pushing herself until she reached the designated car.

She unlocked the car and tossed her suitcase in the backseat, then fell into her own seat. Snow fell onto the ground around her feet as she turned on the car, twisting the dials until she was blasting warm air directly onto her body. "Gods, it's cold!" She hugged her arms around her body in a desperate attempt to stay warm, but quickly remembered that there was somewhere she needed to be. Grabbing her phone out of her purse, she tossed it on the seat next to her before gripping the wheel and hitting the gas. There was no time to dawdle around in the lot.

It wasn't easy driving through all that snow. She had no way of knowing if there was something hidden beneath that white blanket that would pop a tire or something, but it wasn't going to stop her. Well, maybe a popped tire would. Best not to think about that, though. While she was driving as fast as she could go, which wasn't all that fast due to the weather, she picked up her phone and called Eli again.

"You're driving home, aren't you?" Before she could even say anything, Eli was already on point with her observations.

"Absolutely. I told you I'd get home, and that's what I'm doing. I'll be there at... Well, at some point."

"Just don't hurt yourself while getting here, okay?" Her voice took on a more serious tone. "You remember when we had our first child?"

"Like I'd forget that." Nico scoffed, trying to make sure most of her attention was on the road signs so that she didn't lose the road itself. "I'm not that old yet, darling."

"Yes yes, I know. You've been twenty-one for some years now." She could imagine Eli sticking her tongue out at the phone, so she did it right back. That... probably looked really stupid. Good thing she was the only one crazy enough to try driving in this weather. "What I mean is, that baby was ready to born before you got there. He needed to wait until his mama arrived, though."

Nico let out a soft laugh, feeling a single tear slide down her cheek. She wanted to wipe it away, but her hands were occupied at the moment. "Yeah, you really held on for awhile, huh? I did make it, though." It had been amazing to watch their child be birthed into the world, and she had been so glad that she'd been able to get there before it was too late. "I made it just in time then, and I'll be making it again tonight."

"Heh, I know you will, Nico. Our child still needs his mama, though, so don't go crashing into any ditches or anything, okay? Promise me."

"Yeah yeah, I promise you. Both I and the car will be getting back in one piece."

"Good." Her voice seemed softer, but that warmth was still there, as warm as the day Nico had confessed to her. "I love you, Nico."

"I love you too, Eli. Always." They hung up, with Nico even more determined to get there as fast as she could. Why couldn't they have sold cars with dual-mounted flamethrowers? Now there was an idea. Without those, though, she just had to plow on through the snow as fast as she could.

The drive took hours and hours. Though her stomach twisted and growled in protest, and despite her eyes occasionally struggling to stay open, she refused to stop. There was no way she was going to waste time stopping at some diner for food and to pass out on the table. Sure, Eli said not to do anything dangerous, but she wouldn't have to know. As long as she got back in one piece, which she was pretty sure was going to happen.

It was around midnight when she finally got back, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw those familiar lights. She parked the car and shut it down, jumping out and nearly falling into another large bank of snow. Luckily, she stayed on her feet, slamming the car door shut and barely remember to lock it on the run. The suitcase could stay in the backseat: she'd be back for it.

She ran in through the doors, pushing through her utter exhaustion and ignoring the curious stares she got as she collapsed against the wall. Reaching out for the 'up' button, she pressed it in and waited for the elevator. She'd tried to convince Eli that the first floor was better for getting there quicker, but nooo, her wife just had to enjoy the view from the second floor. The elevator came down with a 'ding', and Nico practically threw herself inside.

She pressed the button for the second floor, then repeatedly pressed it until the doors started to close. Yes, she knew that pressing it multiple times didn't make it go any faster. She'd heard that before. It just needed to go faster to reach her standards. Neither the doors closing nor the ride up were fast enough for her, since she was tapping her foot impatiently until the elevator stopped and the doors finally opened.

Flinging herself out of the elevator, Nico rushed down the hall until she skidded right past the room. She quickly corrected herself and yanked open the door, panting heavily. "Darling! I- ... I made it..." The room was empty. A light breeze coming from the slightly-cracked open window made the curtains sway gently. To and fro, to and fro. "Eli?..."

Slowly she walked in, her feet only stopping when she stood next to the bed. The sheets were neatly made, but there wasn't anyone lying there like there was supposed to be. She looked around the room again, as if Eli was hiding and was going to jump out and surprise her. "E-Eli?"

"Mrs. Yazawa?" Nico jumped at the new voice, turning around to see a doctor standing in the doorway. He walked over to her and held out a small piece of paper. After a few seconds of hesitation, Nico took it and pulled it towards her chest, no longer wanting to meet the man's eyes. Somewhere in the back of her brain, she knew what was happening, but the rest of her brain was temporarily shielding her from the information.

"I was instructed by your wife to give that to you just in case. She's... in a better place now." Solemnly he nodded and left the room, leaving Nico alone. Slowly Nico unfolded the paper, her hands trembling as she read the words that were written in Eli's beautiful handwriting, still as prim and proper as it had been when they'd first met.

My dearest Nico, I'm just going to have to assume you're the one reading this, because I won't be able to check. I don't want you to worry or be sad, because everything's going to be fine. Now I know you'll probably be worried and sad regardless of what I say, but it at least gives me comfort to write it to you. Right now I'm sure I'm sitting outside the gates of Heaven, but I'm not going in without you. They'll just have to understand that I can't go in without my love, my best friend. No matter how long it takes, you know that I'll always be waiting for you.

P.S. I love you too.

Nico's entire body shook as she accidentally crumpled the piece of paper in her hands. Tears started to fall down her cheeks as she hurled the paper across the room, a sob wracking her body as it bounced off the wall and fell to the floor. She fell with it, falling backwards onto the bed with another sob, then another. It couldn't possibly have been so long, yet the bed didn't even smell like her anymore.

"I love you," she whispered into the emptiness, staring at the ceiling through misty eyes. She'd been late plenty of times, and every single time Eli had patiently waited for her. For the first time, however, she had been too late. The love of her life was gone.

#love live!#EliNico #ayase eli #yazawa nico #my writing #music inspired

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