Chapter Text
K/DA! K/DA! K/DA!
The crowd roared with applause as K/DA landed their signature poses at the finale of More. It was another immaculate performance, one that they would not be forgetting anytime soon.
“We love you BLADES!!” Akali cried out as they were being escorted away, garnering another wave of cheers. They were still riding their high as they entered their changing room, glowing with the satisfaction of another concert under their belt.
“I still don’t know how you are able to rap underneath that mask,” Sera said, already stripping off her heels. They all made quick work of their stage outfits, eager to get out for a night in the city.
Akali shrugged. “Ahhh, it’s nothing.”
“Don’t be so modest,” Ahri chimed in from behind, “you’re the best rapper in all of Korea!”
They chatted more about rapping, which clubs had the best music, and which restaurants were still open for a late-night snack. It had been two weeks since they had a proper night off, their tour in full swing as they went from city to city, routinely sleeping on the bus or plane overnight. But now, with a short break in their home city of Seoul, they could finally relax, even if it was only for one evening. With the morning came more interviews, photoshoots, and press events. And after all the promotion came more rehearsals, more concerts, more time in the studio. The work never seemed to end.
It was only mid-way through the conversation that Kai’sa noticed how quiet Evelynn had been. Sure, she wasn’t the most talkative, Akali and Ahri fought over that title, but even hiding behind her shades, she gave off an aura of pain. She had sat motionless on her stool, still donning her stage outfit and a full face of makeup. A deep scowl had settled onto her face, the kind that would normally scare off anyone in a five-mile radius.
“Eve, are you doing okay?” Kai’sa asked. “You’re looking rather…pale.” Her skin had taken on a translucent quality to it, like foggy glass on a cold morning. It was as if a hand could pass straight through, momentarily disturbing the hazy figure before reassembling itself into its original form.
Testing this theory, Kai’sa reached out, just barely grazing her hand, when POOF! A cloud of purple smoke exploded from where the diva had sat, engulfing the whole dressing room. With it came a blast of frigid air, the air temperature, and pressure dropping rapidly. They were trapped in a hurricane of smoke.
CLANK! Something had dropped to the floor, the sound magnified by the stunned silence. From the center of the room, a blue orb of light appeared, illuminating Ahri and her unfurling tails.
“Are you guys okay?” She called out into the darkness, catching only glimpses of figures in the thick smog.
“I’m fine,” Kai’sa called back, “I think we all are.” A chorus of voices confirmed their safety, no one daring to move an inch.
After a few moments, the smoke began to rise, and the air began to clear. Droplets of purple haze rose into a thick layer on the ceiling before escaping into a nearby vent. As everyone regained visibility, they could finally see who was still standing; and perhaps, who wasn’t. The stool the diva had been sitting on was empty, with no trace of her presence. On the ground were her golden shades, with one of the lenses popped out.
“Eve?” Akali called out. When no response came, that’s when the panic started to roll in. “Eve??” She frantically cried out, scanning the dressing room for any signs of her. Under the table, behind the clothing rack, Akali destroyed the dressing room in search of her partner. “Help me move this sofa, Sera!”
Kai’sa turned to Ahri, concern pooling in her eyes. “When was the last time she fed?” Devouring suffering was Eve’s favorite emotion to eat, although any pain or misery would suffice. None of her bandmates questioned when she would disappear for the night, only to come back in the morning looking more refreshed than usual. They had seen what would happen if she didn’t feed, her body getting progressively weaker as time wore on. But it had never gotten to this point before.
“Not for a few months I think,” Ahri confided. “I know she didn’t want any possible scandal to ruin our promotion and tour.” Evelynn the diva, a ferocious presence, terrifying everyone with one look alone, and somehow one of the most gentle souls around. She showed affection in her own way, although she would never admit it upfront. Sometimes a vase of flowers would appear on the kitchen table, the exact ingredient that Kai’sa would need for a dish somehow showing up in the fridge that evening. Her lashers were another story, uninhibited by her strong will, they would wrap themselves affectionately around the girls any chance they got. They revealed her true feelings, her desire for closeness, for comfort, for family. From day one, she had put the band first. She believed in their talents, in them. “Eve, you stupid succubus,” Ahri muttered under her breath.
They watched as the younger members moved around furniture, calling out for Eve as though she was a lost pet. They scoured the room for even the smallest trace of her presence, anything that could give them a lead to her whereabouts. The whole dressing room had been rearranged as they continued to drag the shoe rack, the dresser, the vanity, and any movable furniture out from the wall. Finally, as Akali pulled back the towering wardrobe, they found Eve. Or well, whatever was left of her. A small clump of purple shadows, no bigger than a fist, swirled lazily on the floor. Akali knelt down, stroking the mass with tear-streaked cheeks. “Oh Eve, I wish you had told me about this. I could’ve been there for you.”
There was a knock on the door, their manager calling out to finish changing. The venue was closing, and they would all have to eventually leave.
Ahri put a firm hand on Akali’s shoulder. “What’s done is done. Let’s go home and figure out a plan from there.” Her voice was stern, but tears threatened to escape her eyes. Akali took an empty plastic cup from the counter, scooping up the wisp of shadow. At first glance, it looked like any ordinary dark liquor or soda. But it just so happened that this drink was sentient.
“Don’t say a word about this,” Ahri instructed, her hand on the door handle. Everyone wordlessly filed behind her, all looking worse for wear. Once they left the safety of the dressing room they would have to go back to their upbeat personas, thanking their staff and crew and possibly some fans. How could it be that just an hour ago they were all performing together on the stage? And now, what would happen to the fate of their friend? Their family? All they knew was that they had to go. With one last glance back, Ahri pushed open the door.
…
“I have an idea!” Akali’s voice rang clear through the living room. The whole car ride home was filled with tense uncertainty, prolonged by Kai’sa’s agonizingly slow driving (despite going the speed limit). Normally Akali rode shotgun, loudly singing along to whatever song she decided to blast on the stereo. But tonight, the ride was silent, apart from her occasional sniffle from the backseat. Back at home, they bundled themselves up in blankets, only their hands visible as they grasped their cups of tea.
“Rogue, get off the coffee table,” Kai’sa remarked. “You’re going to knock over Eve.”
Akali swiftly bounced off the table, but not before grabbing the chipped black mug beside her feet. “I’m careful!” She held the cup against her cheek, safeguarding the cloud of purple smoke inside. “Careful is my middle name. Akali Careful Jhomen Tethi…or maybe Akali Jhomen Careful Tethi? Or maybe—”
“Just tell us what you were going to say,” Ahri interjected, snuggling herself up against Kai’sa. Beside her, Sera laid on her side, spooning the white loaf that was Bao.
With a harsh clear of her throat, Akali went on with her spiel. “I was just thinking, I know letting Eve hunt right now might not be a good idea. I don’t even know if she can hunt in this state.” They had volleyed around possible ideas for the past hour, with the leader immediately shutting down any plans to go out and hunt. It was too risky, and she refused to budge no matter what. If word got out that they had killed someone, especially during their promotions, that wouldn’t be something they could recover from. They would find a way though, she assured, to help Eve regain her strength. “We all know that Eve feeds from suffering,” Akali continued. “But who is to say we can’t come up with our own?” She wiggled her eyebrows for dramatic effect, clearly very proud of her idea.
“How do you expect this to work?” Ahri asked, already trying to work out the kinks. “We stab ourselves and then just pour Eve on top of us?”
“Hey, no stabbing,” Kai’sa swiftly interjected. “Or jumping off the roof again.” There is no worse way to wake up than to witness Akali attempting to parachute off the roof, her body landing with a hard thud.
“I wasn’t planning on it,” Akali reassured her, before turning back to Ahri. “But why not? Isn’t that what she would do in the past?” No one really knew the diva’s lengthy and mysterious past, her existence coming about seemingly before time itself. She never disclosed very much, only a few bits and pieces when she fancied telling one of her dashing tales. Even Ahri, who had known Eve for hundreds of years, only knew so much. Some things were better left for only the wind to know.
“I don’t know if that’s how it works entirely,” Ahri responded, straightening up on the couch. “If we each come up with something, that won't kill us, then maybe it could work.” Maybe. It was all Akali had left, and she clung to the word for dear life.
“Does the pain have to be physical?” Sera asked, squishing Bao under her grip.
“Not necessarily,” Akali said, her voice rising with a smidge of excitement. “I know Eve can also eat emotional pain. But what matters is that it has to be big. The bigger the better!” She had already begun brainstorming potential scenarios that had maximum suffering. Running into a wall? Forgetting your card at the store? Stubbing your toe on the corner of the table? Maybe her actual middle name was a “suffering genius”.
Ahri meanwhile had picked up one of Eve’s car magazines, tearing out a page and passing it to Akali. “Here,” she said with a mischievous grin, “the worst pain of all. A paper cut!”
“Why do I have to be the one to do it??” Akali objected. Who knew Gumihos could be so evil?
“It was your idea after all.” She swiped the black mug out of Akali’s hands, waiting expectantly for the glossy paper to be dragged along her skin.
“That’s cruel, foxy.” Akali conceded, placing the paper between the webbing of her fingers. She scrunched her eyes closed, wincing at the pain that was to come. Do it for Eve, she thought. Surely the diva would throw herself in front of a moving train for her. The least she could do would be a tiny cut. With excruciatingly slow speed, she pulled the paper towards her, already feeling the top layer of skin breaking. The flaming sting came seconds later. Her mouth moved automatically, cursing in every language she knew, even coming up with her own string of swears. Hell was real, she decided. Ahri carefully poured the shadow over top of the small cut, observing as it hovered in the palm of Akali’s hand. Eventually, it slipped through her fingers, dripping onto the lush carpet.
They waited. No one knew entirely what they expected to happen. Would the diva just reappear in the same sort of flash that she vanished under? Or maybe this blob would somehow take her form? “How do we know if it worked?” Kai’sa asked, watching as Ahri nudged the swirling mass back into the cup.
“We don’t really,” Ahri said, inspecting the mug carefully. “But I think it did. Eve looks a little bigger.” It wasn’t any major growth, perhaps only a few centimeters larger, but it was something. And for now, that was enough. “We just have to give it some time.”
The burning sensation from the paper cut had begun to dull. Akali would give herself a million paper cuts if that’s what it would take. She wanted to continue, to cover her hand in small lacerations, feeding the diva as much pain as she could muster. But Ahri stopped her, engulfing her in a foxy hug while dragging her up to her bedroom. They could continue tomorrow, the Gumiho said, and maybe Eve needed a good rest as well. They all were in dire need of sleep.
It was easy to fit everyone on Ahri’s plush bed, even little Bao had his own nest of blankets in one corner. Normally, Akali slept in the crook of Eve’s arm, her favorite spot in the world. In the morning, she would always wake to the diva’s kisses across her closed eyelids. It ached to not have that same touch. Now in the darkness, she could feel Kai’sa’s warm body pressed against hers, their fingers intertwined. It was a strong embrace, a safe and loving reassurance for things to come. But it wasn’t the same. While the rest were already fast asleep, Akali gazed out at the mug perched on the nightstand. “Soon,” she whispered. “Soon we will be together again.”