Chapter Text
It's a windy late afternoon when Rumi, Mira and Zoey arrive at Celine's house.
As Rumi approaches the door of her childhood home, she hesitates before knocking on the door, her heart pounding.
"It's not too late to turn around if you're not ready yet." Zoey suggests, squeezing Rumi's hand. An anchor in the ocean of anxiety.
"It's okay, I want to see her," Rumi clarifies, "I'm just a nervous."
This will be the first time Rumi meets Celine ever since the day of the Idol Awards; on that day, Celine called to check on Rumi, but neither of them reached out again for months.
Rumi was the one to call this time, asking if she could come over to update Celine on everything that's been happening ever since the new Honmoon was sealed.
"If she gives you any trouble we'll kick her butt." Mira annouces, cracking her knuckles.
Rumi chuckles, feeling a little lighter.
"That won't be necessary, Mira. She still is my basically mother, remember?" Rumi finally knocks on the door.
"But just in case things do get bad..." Zoey starts.
"I'll let you know. Don't worry." Rumi promises, giving the girls a hesitant smile.
The door finally opens.
"Girls," Celine greets, a neutral expression in her face, "it's been a while."
For a moment, Rumi senses some nervousness in her voice, so subtle that the other girls who didn’t grow up with her aren’t able to notice. Aside from that, she’s her usual formal and composed self.
"Hi, Celine." Zoey forces an awkward smile.
"Hey." Mira glares at her.
"Uh... hi!" Rumi tries to sound casual and light, but she can hear her own voice cracking as the words come out.
Celine invites them in and leads them to the same living room Rumi used to watch cartoons on weekend mornings when she was little.
For the first hour or so, they only talk about the last months events — how they've defeated Gwi Ma, the Saja Boys' fates, the new Honmoon and what happened after it was sealed.
It feels just like another hunters meeting, with Rumi speaking as the Huntr/x leader and Celine nodding along and occasionally asking questions. If it weren’t for the subtle uncomfortable looks Celine will direct at Rumi’s face and hands patterns, the only ones that aren’t hidden away from the chilly weather under the hoodie, Rumi would’ve forgotten about the broken bridge that now lays between them.
After a while being inside the house, shielded from the wind, Rumi can feel herself starting to sweat. She grabs the end of her hoodie but hesitates before taking it off — she has never showed them off so casually around Celine before.
Gathering up her courage, she stiffly takes off the outer layer, revealing her crop top underneath. She places the hoodie on the couch’s arm and shifts her position uncomfortably, muscles tense.
She can feel Celine’s eyes fall onto her even though she can’t bring herself to look at her right away, afraid of what she might see on her face.
Celine clears her throat as if to snap herself out of her own thoughts.
"So, how have you been handling... those... publicly?" Celine asks, slightly squinting at Rumi like it's hard to look at her, but she doesn't look away. Rumi takes notice of that, in hopes it might be improvement.
"You don't have to worry about that. Everyone just loves her patterns." Mira provokes, grabbing Rumi's hand and kissing its back without breaking eye contact with Celine.
"... Right. That's great." Celine replies, looking at her own hands on her lap and then going back to looking at Rumi. "And what is the public explanation for the patterns?" Rumi notices that she’s trying to say it naturally, but the word “patterns” still sounds like a curse coming out of her mouth.
"We told them they're birthmarks I used to cover up with make up," Rumi explains, "and whenever they change color or glow I just say it's a special kind of body paint." She shrugs and stares at the floor, a tiny anxious smile on her face.
"They look really pretty on stage." Zoey backs up.
"I see." Celine nods and pauses for a moment. Knowing her, Rumi knows she’s probably thinking of a way to change the subject. "Are you girls hungry?"
As they all eat in the dining room, Rumi notices notices the mood has become awkward and the smiles are being forced out — except for Mira’s, who doesn’t have the patience for that and just glares at Celine the whole time.
Rumi’s sensitive ears hurt when a bright light outside of the window strikes, followed by a loud noise. Zoey jumps, startled, and grabs onto Mira's arm.
"Was that thunder?" Mira wonders, distractedly rubbing Zoey's back.
Rumi checks the weather app on her phone.
"Seems like a storm is about to pour." She informs the girls, showing them the screen.
"It will be dangerous to drive under these conditions." Celine informs, looking out the window.
"Are we stranded then?" Zoey asks, recovered from the surprise.
"Seems like it..." Rumi confirms, already thinking about how that will alter their schedules.
The three girls emite sounds of frustration.
"I'll get rooms ready for the three of you." Celine turns around to face them. "You can leave when the weather clears out."
Celine's always been strict about safety rules, telling Rumi that they have a dangerous job and that they shouldn’t put themselves in more danger than they already have to deal with on a regular basis.
Mira and Zoey both turn to Rumi, looking at her in that way the three of them will look at each other to silently ask if the others are okay.
"Actually, could we all stay in the same room?" She asks Celine, fidgeting with her claws; the thought of being alone in her childhood bedroom feels like more than she can handle today.
Celine looks at Rumi with slight confusion, but doesn’t question any further.
"If that's you prefer." She agrees, leaving the room to supposedly start making the arrangements.
"Rumi, you good?" Mira asks after Celine leaves the room.
"Yeah! Don't worry about me." She replies with an awkward smile; lying about how she feels is a habit that she’s been working on breaking, but she isn’t quite there yet.
"Rumi, seriously?" Mira raises her brow.
"Fine... not really," Rumi sighs, "but let's leave it for when we're alone tonight, okay?"
Mira nods, seeming to find the answer acceptable.
Zoey gets up and gives Rumi a side hug. Rumi gives Zoey’s arm a squeeze in appreciation for the gesture.
"Hey, I'm feeling kinda antsy. You think Celine would mind if we used her workout room?" She asks Rumi after she pulls away, knowing that Rumi would feel better after getting some energy out.
"I'm sure it's fine." Rumi smiles, relieved about having something else to focus on.