Love takes -Something-

Where Maya asked Lacrymira out for an arcade date for the sole purpose of UHUNITHM, goes on the date, bonds over their interests, and finally have a heart-to-heart chat together on a sunset.

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A/N: I hate myself. I was supposed to narrate the Love You UTAGE but I just cba to do that. Sorry.

And I find the expositions clunky, so I apologize if it really is.

Also, this is our 10th fic! (Confetti) this project's aim was initially at 14 fics, so we're halfway there. But! I think we can attempt at least 20 now.

Enjoy!

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“Lacrymira.”

“Hm?” The person in question turned her attention away from the pile of dishes in the sink, her dishwashing glove-clad hands still working to clean off the dirty plate. Working her way through punishment, doing domestic chores as opposed to her usually imposing image.

It was just a normal day. Maya was all cozy on the kitchen bar, a smile etched on her face as she gazed down at the phone. Her eyes, on the contrary of the peaceful atmosphere, are sparkling a bit too bright for just another relaxed and quiet moment.

“Are you free…”

“Are you bored…”

“Are you available…”

“...I can be. Yes, I am,” Lacrymira replied to Maya's rapid and eager questions. “What's on your mind, mm?”

“Let’s go on a date!” Maya’s posture straightened on her seat. “An arcade date,” she added dreamfully.

Usually, Lacrymira was the one to initiate dates, but hearing Maya inviting her on a date was unbearably adorable, even if there's an obvious ulterior motive beneath it.

“Oh?” Lacrymira tried not to crack an aggressive response and upturn of her lips, “How romantic and considerate of you, Maya. What brought this idea up?” she dug shallowly.

“...” Maya took another look at her phone, then averted her gaze back to Lacrymira. Her silver hair cascaded down her back as she was working, her casual clothes hugging her form perfectly— Maya thinks it's not wrong to ogle for another minute.

Attention came back to her as she realized she left an awkward silence, “Uh… UHUNITHM new GATE. It was just released today,” she said with a lilt of her voice.

Back then, UHUNITHM introduced a new, special mode to celebrate their tenth anniversary a while ago: Linked VERSE. 

It was a mode where you can unlock gates known as Linked GATEs. Gates were themed around the major version they represented. They were released in the order of UHUNITHM’s major version updates. Each gate is unlocked by completing the map and certain conditions, then proceeded by challenging the boss song on the mode to obtain the new song.

It can get pretty time consuming, expensive and adds up quickly to complete each map. It wasn't rare that Maya would return home late, and Lacrymira had to pick her up. Truly a dedicated rhythm gamer. The arcade was like a second home to her.

It's to the point where other regulars on the arcade knew both of them. Though the regulars there kept that knowledge mostly to themselves.

Well, never ask what a dedicated rhythm gamer does in the arcade. They will and would spend thousands on their own enjoyment of clicking or tapping imaginary notes to the beat.

And so, the bills were always on Lacrymira. Not that Lacrymira minds… she is more than capable of funding Maya's needs, including her hobbies and anything Maya wants.

(As if she wasn't 16k on maimai. Tsunagite RE:MASTER SSS recorded on her Aime. Fake ass. Lacrymira was also addicted and also played them daily, but at least not as severely as Maya.)

Lacrymira set the clean plate aside, taking another dirty one to scrub. “Oh? The last GATE?” she hummed. “Just, imagine only finishing a major event today.”

“Say that again?”

She washed the plate with running water. “Imagine just finishing it up today. I’m already close to XaleidoscopiX SSS.”

“I was genuinely excited about UNIVERSE!” Maya faux-annoyedly snorted. “I hope the next maimai version release gets delayed then. So, you'll have more time to do more chores~”

“Maya, you're too mean. It wouldn't. Don't jinx it.” Lacrymira theatrically lamented. “Maybe I should spend more time outside to avoid your chores.” 

“You wish. I'll make sure you won't have the chance to get away. Maybe that'd be sufficient for your repentance.” She clicked on the post to expand the details, “Melodiniq… huh.”

Melodiniq was the song that concluded the LINKED VERSE event, finalizing it with a perfect ending.

The player would have to unlock all of the gates from ORIGIN to VERSE. Only then, an unknown gate would be available to challenge: Linked GATE X-VERSE, then eventually Re:VERSE, to unlock YOUNITHM.

YOUNITHM would then be the song that paved the way to Melodiniq’s gate. Melodiniq was the first ever song to receive the highest difficulty, which is 16, breaking the difficulty barrier of UHUNITHM for the second time in just a period of time.

Lacrymira tilted her head slightly. “YOUNITHM is already too difficult.”

It raised a question mark to Lacrymira. But Maya is always dead serious about it. 

Lacrymira had experienced Maya's dedication and expertise firsthand. Let's say… when you're really passionate about something, you can improve on it very rapidly.

“Well, that's crazy,” Maya said as the glaring font of difficulty 16 prickled her eyes, “I'm going to attempt it!” She sounded optimistic, like she'd aim for SS or higher on her first play on the linked gate.

“Wouldn’t the queue be ridiculous today, though?”

How do Maya tell Lacrymira that she's been actively gatekeeping the location?

“Umm… It wouldn't!” she reassured.

“Sure it wouldn't—”

Maya cut her off, “I made sure of it.” She drastically redirected, while making a shoo-ing gesture, “Now chop chop! Get to finishing the dirty dishes!”

“There, there. Whatever you say, dearest,” It was embarrassing to admit that she's a sucker for her wife. If she doesn't admit defeat, then she'll be hit with the most effective weapon: Maya's pleading eyes. So, it was a tactical retreat.

“I suppose after that, we'll get ready for the date?” Lacrymira turned her head, expecting Maya's confirmation. There's still a few dishes left for her to clean, but it's not too much for the wait to be a long one. She kept telling herself that it's only for Maya as she does this… boring work.

“Mm,” Maya nodded a little too fast, as if her imaginary tail was wagging from Lacrymira's acknowledgement. She looked completely proud after successfully convincing her.

The plate almost slipped out of Lacrymira's hands as her focus swayed, sending her scrambling to grasp it back. She quickly retracted her gaze back, but the image was there to stay. 

Lacrymira is very doomed.

“I see…” Lacrymira cleared her throat and masked her fumble with feigned indifference, hoping Maya wouldn't notice. “Like usual for tonight then, dearest?” Lacrymira flirtatiously shot back with a slightly hushed cadence that carried clear undertones, like nothing had happened.

Visionary, Maya would say and scoff at. But she went quiet from the aberrant, impromptu innuendo. Her thoughts immediately wandered to that certain territory…

“…why— why would you even ask about that out of nowhere—” Maya sputtered, her cheeks heating up. She shied away like a maiden, averting her gaze somewhere else. But she eventually relented, responding quietly, though full of dilemma, “Mhm… fine, as always…”

As long as she gets to play UHUNITHM. The sacrifices she must go through just to pay for her sessions are not that excruciating when compared to the ‘reward’, after all. It was one of the way she could pay Lacrymira back—

“Good,” The embarrassment could practically be felt from far away. Which is really what Lacrymira wanted. “Don't give me that look. I don't bite that hard, Maya, do I?” The timbre of her voice doubled down, "Even if I did, you don't seem to be averse to screaming for me the whole night…”

Those rosy and puffy cheeks… The irritation and at the same time timidity her two-colored eyes held… To Lacrymira, it just added to the endearing points Maya had. A cute wife equals a happy life! Such is the philosophy of Lacrymira's life. At least after their marriage.

Maya was, simply put, too embarrassed to form any retort. “Gosh. Don’t– Don’t say things like that! Get back to dishwashing! Shoo!”

“But—”

Maya returned Lacrymira's gaze with a certain expression that made Lacrymira resume taking down the pile on the sink obediently, huffing to herself.

“Must you be this imposing for just a bit of fun?” Lacrymira stifled her chuckle.

For the remainder of Lacrymira's chore, the two of them exchanged a few more words back and forth between each other. The room was filled with their chatter, and it felt lively and safe for both of them. The room dissolved into a blob of warmth and idling around, until the bright sunshine poured from every window, signalling noon had come.

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The arcade was located not really far away from their house, so they ended up getting ice cream along the way (courtesy of Lacrymira, as always). The walk to the arcade was fairly peaceful. They ended up exchanging brief stares at each other as they entered the familiar vicinity.

Like usual, not giving any hell to the other machines, they went straight to the rhythm games section. As expected, the arcade was packed with players trying their hands on various charts and regulars chatting with each other. But it wasn't that packed to the point of long queues, thanks to the location being fairly kept.

Lacrymira wished no one would really recognize her, since there were new players as well. It would really be awkward. Everyone would be asking why the hell she was here. After all, no one knew she was a sweat at maimai (as she posts her scores on a separate Twitter account).

“Look what I told you, UHUNITHM won't be that crowded,” Maya said in a sing-song tone, holding up her index finger in a ‘gotcha’ motion in front of Lacrymira.

Lacrymira gazed to the queue board, then to the maimai and UHUNITHM cabs, then back to Maya. “Fair. You can have that point, then—” she sneakily took a sample of Maya's ice cream. Vanilla is yummy.

“Lacrymiraaa! That's mine!” Maya tried to steal her ice cream back, but Lacrymira held it a bit higher than her reach. Lacrymira's look was smug as she watched Maya, with her short stature, make jumps trying to retrieve her dessert back. “Not fair!” Maya whined.

“Psst,” a voice called from the community waiting seats.

Both Maya and Lacrymira turned their attention to the source of the call.

“Saya, nice to see you again,” 

“Well, fancy seeing you here and now,” Lacrymira finally relented, giving the poor, petite girl her ice cream back.

Saya showed a small tug of her lips for Maya. But immediately after hearing Lacrymira's voice, she imperceptibly flinched. Nevertheless, she tried to keep her cool. “...are you two on a date?”

Having finished the ice cream halfway, Maya bit on the cone tentatively. “Yes?”

“Hm. Nothing. Just unusual. You usually only go together on weekends,” Saya pointed out.

“There’s a new UHUNITHM update, so she pestered me for a date,” Lacrymira blurted out.

Saya shrugged. “I wasn't aware I was asking you, but okay.”

“Ouch… tough,” Lacrymira put on a faux-hurt tone, but it was dressed in playfulness. “Did Lethe ghost you again? No need to get this riled up.”

“No…” she trailed off, her eye twitching slightly from Lacrymira's taunt. She steered the conversation away, “Well. Go line up on the board for maimai.”

“You two are always on something,” Maya commented in the background exasperatedly.

“There’s actually no one on the UHUNITHM cabs right now, so go ahead.”

Lacrymira chimed in again to express her ‘gratitude’, “You’re such a great help.”

“Piss off,” Saya turned away from the couple's direction.

“Did I somehow hit a sore spot?”

“We'll be going! See you, Saya!” Maya ushered Lacrymira away.

“Have fun,” Saya replied, disinterested and couldn't be bothered to interact further.

They took a few steps back to the queue board to pick up a marker, writing both of their names as a duo.

“maimai players are bitchless.”

“That implies you are, too.”

“I'm the only exception in this arcade.”

“You two need to find a way to get along with each other.”

“I don't need anyone other than you,” Lacrymira seamlessly switched to a romantic (read: flirty) tone.

Maya sighed. “Why are you so smooth?” the small bite-size cone disappeared into her mouth.

In a moment, Lacrymira took Maya's chin temporarily, tilting it up so she could wipe off the excess of melted ice cream on her plump cheeks and lips. “There, now you're all set. Such an adorable messy eater you are.”

Maya pouted, then she proceeded to whine, “I’m not a child…”

“Should I lick it clean off your puffy cheeks instead, dearest?”

“Of course not! Don't— don't be shameless.”

“So you're not averse to that in private?”

“Still… It's embarrassing. Shut up and just follow me.”

Pulling Lacrymira with her, Maya directed them both in front of the UHUNITHM cabs. They halted in front of it, making sure there were no other people that were in the queue. Maya began stretching her arm’s muscles and joints, as did Lacrymira, though not as dramatically as Maya.

Each of them occupied a cabinet. Greeted by the title screen, they pulled their gloves out of their pocket or their bag respectfully, along with any more accessories. Of course, not forgetting the coin pouch (since, quoting Maya, was cooler to bring it along than a plain card, albeit sacrificing convenience).

Lacrymira pulled out her wallet to take out both their cards, which they proceeded to card in.

“Hehe. Let's match, Lacrymira,”

“Wait. I haven't gotten to the point where I should hunt for the collab songs—” 

“Check again.”

Lacrymira browsed around the map list—

Only to find the entire UHUNITHM map list for obtaining the gates have been cleared out.

And it wasn't a mystery who did it either, since only her and Maya had access to her account. Who knows how much Maya spent on her account while she's away… It stacks up to a hefty sum, she imagines. This whole event is far more expensive than XaleidoscopiX in itself.

“Oh? It's already completed? Hmm, I wonder who stole my account…”

“That's odd,” Maya tried to hold back a chuckle. “Don't forget to use the premium ticket, so we can attempt Linked VERSE multiple times,” Maya reminded carefreely.

She acknowledged Maya with a rasp hum. Way to make a sizable dent in Lacrymira's finances. And she enjoys every second of it, as long as it's Maya.

Transitioning to the song select screen, Maya hovered her hand on the slider, making her way to the front of the Linked VERSE event. “Let's go straight to YOUNITHM,” her voice was a tone lower in mockery, “Or do you need to warm up first?”

“Ah, my over-proud Maya,” Lacrymira scrolled over the assortment of songs quickly, before she stopped at a decent song for warm-up. Aether Crest: Celestial MASTER 15+.

Full Chain!

After the song, both of their screens showed SSS+, All Justice.

Maya blinked at the results, gazing sideways at Lacrymira. Without any cues, she hugged Lacrymira’s arm. At that moment, she knew their chemistry was over the top today!

“Let's play Linked VERSE…” Maya mumbled.

It was blurry after that, Maya and Lacrymira just continued to indulge in the gameplay, not caring much about the surroundings at all. Surprisingly, the arcade wasn't that crowded enough for their grind to be interrupted by the queue.

Songs turned to a session, then two, four, eight, besting personal records. Hours passed while they attempted to beat Melodiniq together on the arcade, until finally on the twelfth painstaking credit— multiply that by 4, actually— but by hard work and courage—

Link COMPLETED!

“Eh?!” Relief washed over them both. Maya jumped with glee, completely embracing Lacrymira’s body with her arms around her neck as celebration. “Lacrymira! We did it!” her eyes were glossy, shining with pride and satisfaction.

Despite Lacrymira's surprise, she slung her arms around Maya's hips and torso, chuckling to herself, “You seem like you're about to bawl,” she wiped a drop of Maya's tear. Maya really gazed at her like she was everything at that moment.

“Did you really— no one has ever cleared it yet!” Maya’s gaze melted instantly when a hand came to catch her tear, prying it off gently with her hand. “You're the best, Lacrymira,”

Someone gagged from the scene, but none of them had noticed. They were completely immersed with each other, forgetting they were in an arcade.

But it seems like they forgot something vital, though… as Maya noticed and quickly broke the moment, pulling herself back to retrieve her phone from her bag. She coughed lightly, her actions finally dawned on her.

“That's enough UHUNITHM for today,” Lacrymira patted Maya’s head.

Positioning the camera to the right angle displaying her score properly, Maya clicked on the capture button. “Just say you want to play maimai,” she pocketed her phone back.

“Indeed I do, darling. But I think I'll only do a credit, though,” Lacrymira turned around to see the queue board. Coincidentally, it was already their turn. 

Preparing to move to another spot, Maya gathered her belongings back inside her bag energetically, making sure nothing was left behind. Her spirit was still absolutely lifted from the clear.

“So diligent.” Lacrymira’s gaze lingered on Maya's decorated bag, seeing pins with art featuring herself and charms themed around her. She had to admit it was a little eerie sometimes, but seeing Maya carry something reminiscent of her brought her a sense of affection and pride.

“Your bag is so cute.”

Hearing Lacrymira's compliment, Maya's lips thinned. She turned the front of her bag away from Lacrymira, picking it up with a slight heat on her ears. “Ah, you make it so embarrassing,” she said hesitantly.

After they were done with tidying up, they quickly occupied the only empty maimai cabinet soon after. Not without eyeing the next person on the queue that almost stood up.

The set was fairly light— that was a stretch too far. Of course, there was the mandatory Abstruse Dilemma. Both of them did great, until it was followed by…

Kid Maya not, it's Tsunagite. Maya ended up cursing Lacrymira out for the entirety of the song with a massive variety of vocabularies, to which Lacrymira responded with laughter as she proceeded to SSS+ it whilst Maya was suffering.

In song selection, Maya ended up sulking at Lacrymira as she picked a song for her turn. She chose a beloved song from UHUNITHM: crazy (about you). The song was incredibly good and with a reasonable chart too, so it was an easy pick.

Maya wanted to make Lacrymira pay back, but alas… She wasn't capable yet for high level MASTERs. She was going to make her pay for it in the privacy of their room, anyways—

The rest of the set went sailing and smooth, and they seemed to enjoy it plenty. They even had the opportunity to pick that one romantic UTAGE [¹] for their last song.

Granted, the scene they made with that song every time they met for a kiss made people in that vicinity almost gag and side eye them from their infectious love, but what is better than bonding with your partner over your interests shamelessly, anyways?

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After spending time in the arcade, their date wasn't over yet.

Together, they walked together hand in hand by the sidewalks. Since it was already late, the streets were not as busy as usual, with the temperature not too hot and not too cold either, just the perfect weather to go outside with your loved ones. They were accompanied by the constant surrounding noise; people going about their day, birds flocking everywhere in search of places to perch.

As the breeze made their clothes sway, Maya let out a noise of relief.

“Mmh… the weather's not too bad today. Don't you think so?”

“It’s windy today. Just in time for our date.”

“We should get a nice spot to settle down somewhere,” Maya said.

Lacrymira hummed. “I know a place where the sunset should be fully visible near here. Follow me, Maya,”

Lacrymira led them both to a secluded but beautiful spot down the streets, with a clear view of the sunset and the beautiful sea.

The pigeons near them flew away as they sat down on a stable concrete structure, away from the hustle and bustle of the center of the city, admiring the quiet and melancholic atmosphere.

“Mmm… this really is a nice spot!” Maya’s dangling legs in the air bounced. She pointed out enthusiastically, “Lacrymira, Lacrymira, look at those pigeons. There's so many pigeons around here. It's not like usual.”

“Looks like they're searching for the grains scattered around.” Lacrymira took Maya's hand on hers, caressing it gently. Her eyes drifted to the orange sky as she recalled something from her past. “Ah. When I was still in mentorship, I remember I used to get tasked to feed pigeons around with Nell.”

Maya moved herself slightly closer to Lacrymira, leaning on her side. “I didn't know you took mundane tasks too.”

“We don't take everything. Just occasionally, and when we took these,” her arm came to wrap around the other’s hips, pulling her closer, “I'd scare them away. It was pretty easy and fun, but Nell would scold me every time I did that.”

“Do you still take these?”

The flock of pigeons around reacted after Lacrymira made a sudden motion, scaring them away and making them flee the scene disorderly. Maya huffed, letting one of the pigeons settle on her shoulder.

“No. Nell wouldn't trust me with those pigeons after a couple of times I scared them away. So eventually, we decided to tackle other tasks instead.”

Maya held her chuckle back. “Pfft… Don’t worry, you can still feed pigeons if you miss those days.” She made the pigeon perch on her finger to give it a pat on its head. How she made them malleable instantly, compared to Lacrymira, held obvious contrast.

“...I'd rather refrain,” a single twitch of Lacrymira's hand was enough to scare the pigeon away, as if it had grudges against her, “Back then, I was a mischievous child. I was scared of Nell, but now I realized she isn't that bad, compared to someone I know.”

Maya whimpered when it flew away. “Huh? Why? Did someone else steal her throne?”

“A girl did, indeed. She's cute, kind, and lovable, but scarier in every aspect,” Lacrymira had this fond upturn of her lips, “But she’s also excessively caring,”

“Are you seriously calling another woman—”

“Her name is Maya,” Lacrymira's grin widened.

“Eh? Me? I'm not that scary!”

“Oh, you don't want to know the horror,” her hand came to brush on Maya's cascading blond locks, “Whenever I come home very late at night, she'd scold me like there's no tomorrow,”

“Anyone would be mad if their partner wasn't giving them any reason why they were back late!” then she added with a low whisper, “Besides, I'm just worried…”

“Hm? I thought you said you didn't care yesterday?”

Maya frowned. “But… that's different! Of course I care about you, you dense woman. If I didn't, I would've divorced you a long time ago.”

“And the best part is, she's forgiving,” Lacrymira said in a teasing manner.

“Flatterer... But I think I reserve the right to scold you, don't you think so?” Maya giggled.

“You do demand quite a lot, Maya. Not that I mind… it's rather cute.”

“—!” Her face morphed visibly, her eyes were wide for a second, before her expression eventually melted into a fond and slightly flushed one. “I don't,” Maya pulled herself to sit straight again.

“There’s no need to be shy with me, is there? De-ar-est Ma-ya,”

“No, no, I think you're being unfair, La-cry-mi-ra,”

They might be tossing their names back and forth in a banter, but all of them were said with softness in the moment.

“I prefer to think I'm fully fair. Though the rules are completely in your hands,” she brushed away the messy strands obstructing Maya's two-colored eyes, “Even if the odds are in your favor, I'd lose millions of time for you.”

“Stop that…” Maya hit the other’s arm, clearly faltering from Lacrymira's action. “Where did you even learn that kind of talking from?”

“I reckon that came naturally. Only for you, dearest,” Lacrymira winked. “I heard if you cut open my body, you'll find your name etched on my heart.” [²]

Lacrymira expected that one to pierce Maya's heart right on the eye, and she didn't miss indeed. But even though Maya was hit, she pretended not to, coughing lightly onto her hand instead. “Hm… Whatever. And it doesn't work like that, idiot.”

“What if it was true, then?”

Maya pulled out a small leather bound book and a pen from her bag. “Then you'll just… die,” she muttered, flipping the book open on her lap and directing her attention to it instead. “In a very stupid way. And I won't be attending your funeral.” 

“Would you? You don't sound very convincing,” she paused for a second, before she resumed. “What are you working on, Maya?” Lacrymira asked, her prying eyes attempting to read a line of the book.

Maya quickly took the book back, facing it away from Lacrymira with a scoff. “It’s a story I based on you and me,” she narrowed her eyes, as soon as she started to talk about her work of passion; the story that she made.

“What if, somehow, there was a broken, peaceful world of crystallized memories? It provides a paradise for lost and miserable souls, even after it has been put into eternal damnation in the form of endless snow.”

“There, I imagined that I'd be a defective and unlucky soul. Always waking up with a hope for a better day, yet all I could find was torment. Like chains binding me useless.”

Lacrymira listened to Maya's long spiel about her work intently.

Maya's voice was very nice and soothing. She didn't know if it was just her devotion talking or something else altogether…

“Even if I exchanged sobs and tears, it wasn't enough… so I would seek solace in quietness and darkness, afraid of seeing a hint of light.”

“But I knew a path of salvation was ahead of me. Even when I was hopeless, I couldn't surrender to the endless pit below, if I hesitated. So, I kept pushing forward, finally taking my own fate into my hands… to the bright side.” 

Her body relaxed back to as it was, gauging every slight change on Lacrymira's face. “Interested?”

A lot of things were forming inside Lacrymira's thoughts from what Maya laid out, but she couldn't help but think that it was… strange. And the way Maya's eyes were unnaturally foggy…

“Hm… that's a very interesting premise. I'd expected that much, since you have a way with words. That Maya is steadfast— like the one by my side. How she can only find comfort in what others find unsettling. How beautiful. There's also redemption too. It sounds hopeful. Where did you get the idea from?”

Maya shrugged. “I don't know where I got the idea from, but it was just natural. As if I've lived through it…”

“Your subconsciousness speaks the loudest and knows what the surface can't. It remembers, even if the brain doesn't. Perhaps, you’ve lived through it unknowingly?”

“I think it would make sense, considering my unknown origin.“ Maya assumed the thinking pose, her finger resting on her cheek listlessly, “But what if it's an alternate universe, instead?”

“That'd be a plausible theory, too. The possibilities are near endless, after all.”

“But I'm not finished yet! I want to add that ‘Insight’ spark inside the story too,” Maya's hand made a gesture resembling an explosion.

Lacrymira grasped the fabric near the area of her heart lightly with her fingers, “Me? And how should you incorporate me in the story?” she asked, then slowly dragged her hand upward to feel Maya's cheek, and maybe—

“Aah!” Maya whined as she felt Lacrymira pinching her cheeks. Her hand came to overthrow Lacrymira’s reign over her cheek. She didn't comment much about it, as she was still engrossed in the topic. “Mmf… well, Insight would be a deranged, obsessive individual… Like you, but take it to the next level. There'd be too much emotional manipulation happening, too.”

“Just look at me, darling, do I look like I could hurt a fly?” Lacrymira spoke, like she didn't torture horrors for living. The incident last week.

“You pretty much do, dummy,” Maya deadpanned. “Anyways, I was thinking you'd still be an ascendant— a seeker. Whatever, bleh. But some things lead to another, that made you get out of here and have an interest in me. Somehow,” she scribbled lines of words on the page. Perhaps the vision of what she had on her mind.

“That would make sense. Why wouldn't I be drawn to such a unique soul, like a moth drawn to a flame?” then she switched into a slightly dreamy tone (?) that was so unbelievably Insight for Maya. “Ah, If I was that Insight, I'd force myself into the world, just for you… and I'd take you to keep all for myself.”

“Right! That's exactly what happened! You're getting the hang of this…?” Maya didn't know what to react with appropriately. So obsessive— so attractive… It made her accidentally write down what she wanted Lacrymira to do to her, before she realized what direction she was going, and struck them out. 

Luckily, Lacrymira hadn't noticed.

“My alternate self would know she's the one when she sees her. Then, what follows?”

“Um. I haven't thought about it yet. The paper is theirs to write, of their own story…”

“You haven't had any new ideas yet.”

“You just know, huh,” Maya complained. “Hmph, I'll try to brainstorm again later.”

“Your dedication is very commendable.” Lacrymira said with slight pity, “I think this could make a 100k words fic.”

“Are you expecting one about us to pop up on AO3 very soon?”

“Perhaps. You never truly know what I like to indulge in in my free time, when I'm bored.”

It was indeed reading AO3. Lacrymira found it entertaining, especially reading Maya's dozen works on her. What an unwavering one man soldier.

Having run out of topics, they soon fell into comfortable silence, accompanied with the constant, peaceful noise of Maya's pen dragging across paper. The atmosphere, too, was charged with melancholy, as the sun loomed over the horizon further like it was sinking, casting a beautiful reddish hue on them as they basked in each other's presence.

Suddenly, Maya's hand that was grabbing the pen faltered. “Hey, Lacrymira…” her gaze hovered over to her side.

Lacrymira met her gaze, “Hm?”

“Do you really believe alternate universes exist?” Her words were quiet, but the meaning of her question was very clear.

“If you're asking me… Yes. I do. It’d be contradictory to my own existence, if I didn’t.”

“I see,” there was a pause, before she asked one more time, with more certainty: “Do you believe we’re fated to meet, in every universe?”

Lacrymira closed her eyes to think about it for a moment, then she shook her head. “No. But I'm certain I'd have broken the laws of the universes, just to meet you,” she turned to Maya once again, offering that same devoted and knowing look that solidified Maya’s trust on her, in the first place.

Maya’s eyes softened, holding what seemed to be almost relief behind it. She intertwined her free hand with Lacrymira's tenderly.

They both knew—

“Me too. Even if this sounds quite pragmatic, I don't think fate had destined us together. I don't even think fate… truly exists,” a single laugh escaped her throat. Maya paused briefly, allowing wistfulness to seep into the quiet air, before she continued with her eyes shut: “But what I truly believe— No matter if fate does or doesn't allow such blasphemy against its will— whether it'll end in tragedy, in bliss, or in a bittersweet ending, we'll find each other.”

“Not because of fate, but because I trust you, and trust is the highest degree of vows.”

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Extra deleted scene:

When Lacrymira finally finished, as per Maya's plan, they started to prepare for going outside. Bringing about two pairs of gloves, a decently sized pouch full of coins, perfume, earphones, and everything needed for their session later.

But one thing is almost certain: Maya always took too long to prepare for this sort of activity… Which makes Lacrymira wonder what the hell Maya does in her room?

“Mayaaa! Are you done yettt…”

“Can't you wait a little?!”

“I’m already booooored! Hurry,”

“Ugh, okay! I'm coming…!”

But she wasn't prepared for what awaited her behind the door, that was just seconds away from opening.

Just a minute later—

“L–Lacrymira,” Maya stared awkwardly at the currently down-horrendous Lacrymira.

“Breathtaking… I'd sacrifice myself just for a mere rendition of you. I'd sunder time and space, and I will be at your disposal, to use as your heart content,” Lacrymira waxed poetics about Maya.

The sight of Maya in her white dress is enough to make Lacrymira's legs weak. Even if it's fully covered, it still does wonders to her lower region.

“Ngh… I'm already so hard,” Lacrymira moaned, “Maya…”

It's like her every sense was pulling her down to try making her kneel and worship the girl in front of her immediately.

Caught off guard, Maya froze, her hand carrying the house keys stiffened. “Wh–Whaaaat? Pardon?”

“Mercy, Maya,” Lacrymira gazed up at Maya with a wide smile and eyes like they've seen a divine entity. “You look delectable and tempting… all the time.”

Maya tried to escape Lacrymira's hold and sidestep carefully. “It’s just a normal dress! What happened to normal compliments?” Nails grazed the surface of Maya's white stockings, “Wait— not like that!” She kicked Lacrymira away with her short heels gently to keep some space.

“You're as radiant as the first time I saw you, my goddess…” She gave Maya's leg a squeeze, “Words are not enough to describe your divinity.”

“H–Hey! Lacrymiraaaa! Stop groveling and get up! Don't think about anything weird!”

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A/N: who said maimai players can't get any play? Maya is there to stay

There's like a special event rn so I took the liberty to upload. Tell me what's freaking suitable for AO3 here. Cause there's nothing.

Last time I uploaded Elysian Moira to AO3 everyone found it weird. Thanks for reading.

Quick explanations/examples:

[¹] – Love You UTAGE

[²] – based on a common copypasta in indonesia, “belah dadaku isinya kamu semua” which means “cut open my chest, it's full of you”